e  0  2  2      9 


Art   Handbook 

OF   THE 

Pennsylvania  Museum  and  School  of  Industrial  Art 


The  Maiolica 


OF 


Mexico 


BY 

EDWIN  ATLEE    BARBER,  A.M.,  PH.D. 

Director 

Author  of 

' '  Pottery  and  Porcelain  of  the  United  States  ' 
"Anglo-American  Pottery" 
"American  Glassware,  Old  and  New' 
"Tulip  Ware  of  the  Pennsylvania-German  Potters' ; 

' '  Marks  of  American  Potters  ' 
'  Salt  Glazed  Stoneware, "        "Tin  Enameled  Pottery 
"Artificial  Soft  Paste  Porcelain' 
"Lead  Glazed  Pottery,"   Etc. 


PRINTED    FOR    THE    MUSEUM 

MEMORIAL    HALL,  FAIRMOUNT    PARK 

PHILADELPHIA 

1908 


■ 


Copyright.   1908,  by 

The  Pennsylvania  Museum  and  School  op 

Industrial  Art 

Philadelphia.     Penna. 


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PREFACE 


In  entering  an  entirely  new  field  of  research  the  inves- 
tigator is  hampered  at  the  outset  by  the  entire  absence  of 
landmarks,  established  by  his  predecessors,  from  which  ex- 
plorations might  be  continued  into  less  well-known  do- 
mains. In  the  preparation  of  a  monograph  on  the  Maiolica 
of  Mexico  the  author  has  had  no  previously  published  ac- 
counts of  this  industry  to  guide  him.  Starting  with  only 
the  unverified  tradition  that  pottery,  in  the  style  of  the 
earthenware  of  Talavera,  Spain,  had  been  produced  some- 
where in  Mexico  at  a  remote  period,  it  was  necessary  to  fol- 
low out  each  clue  that  could  be  discovered,  and  to  unfold  the 
history  of  the  art,  step  by  step.  The  results  of  these  investi- 
gations, extending  over  several  years,  are  presented  in  the 
following  pages.  While  there  is  yet  much  to  be  learned 
concerning  the  subject,  we  now  know  that  soon  after  the 
Conquest  of  Mexico,  tin  enameled  pottery  was  being  pro- 
duced in  that  country,  although  ceramic  writers  have  hereto- 
fore believed  that  its  manufacture  was  never  attempted  in 
the  Western  Hemisphere. 

Attention  was  first  called  to  the  existence  of  stanni- 
ferous faience  in  Mexico  in  a  paper  by  the  present  writer, 
which  appeared  in  the  Bulletin  of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum 
of  July,  1906,  which  contribution  to  knowledge  was  later 
incorporated  in  the  Museum's  Art  Primer  Number  5,  on 
Tin  Enameled  Pottery.  The  announcement  of  this  important 
discovery  aroused  widespread  interest  among  ceramic  stu- 
dents in  Eurone,  as  well  as  in  the  United  States  and  Mexico. 
To  investigate  the  subject  more  fully  the  author  visited 
the  latter  country  in  November,  1907,  where  an  opportunity 

3 


4  PREFACE 

was  presented  to  study  the  ware  itself  and  to  collect  data 
relating  to  the  history  of  this  little-known  art. 

Although  the  wares  here  treated  are  more  of  the  na- 
ture of  the  stanniferous  faience  of  Holland,  France  and 
Germany  than  of  the  maiolica  of  Italy,  and  will  therefore 
by  some  authorities  be  considered  as  not  entitled  to  classi- 
fication with  true  maiolica,  the  term  has  been  used  here 
for  the  reason  that  the  ware  is  undoubtedly  an  offshoot  of 
the  maiolica  of  Spain,  which  reflects  the  art  of  the  Italian 
potters.  While  the  enameled  ware  of  Mexico  was  never 
lustered  like  the  Italian  and  Hispano-Moresque,  and  was 
not  coated  with  a  wash  of  lead  glaze  to  impart  brilliancy, 
it  nevertheless  possesses  many  of  the  characteristics  of  both. 

The  writer  takes  pleasure  in  acknowledging  his  indebt- 
edness to  Sehor  Enrique  L.  Ventosa,  of  Puebla,  and  to 
Mrs.  Zelia  Nuttall,  of  Coyoacan,  for  valuable  assistance  in 
his  investigations  in  Mexico;  to  Mr.  Albert  Pepper,  and  M. 
Gaston  de  Ramaix,  Secretary  of  the  Belgium  Legation,  both 
of  the  City  of  Mexico,  and  to  Dr.  Wilhelm  Bauer,  of 
Tacubaya,  for  photographs  of  important  examples  of  Mexi- 
can maiolica  in  private  hands;  to  Rev.  Francis  S.  Borton, 
of  Puebla,  for  his  researches  among  the  early  publications 
of  Mexico  and  the  manuscript  records  of  the  city  of  Puebla, 
through  which  many  of  the  facts  set  forth  in  the  following 
pages  have  been  obtained;  and  finally  to  Mr.  Albert  H. 
Pitkin,  of  Hartford,  who  accompanied  the  author  to  Mex- 
ico, for  invaluable  advice  and  assistance  in  securing  ex- 
amples of  the  ware  for  the  Museum  collection. 

The  colored  plates  have  been  reproduced  from  draw- 
ings made  from  the  originals  by  students  of  the  School  of 
Industrial  Art  connected  with  this  Museum,  and  by  Sefior 
Ventosa,  of  Puebla. 

E.  A.  B. 

Philadelphia,  July  30,  1908. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Preface  3 

I.     Tin  Enameled  Pottery 9 

II.  Industrial  Activity  of  the  Spaniards  in  Mexico  ii 

III.  Puebla,  the  Centre  of  Maiolica  Manufacture.  .  14 

IV.  A  Potters'  Guild  in  Puebla 18 

V.     Pueblan  Potters   32 

VI.     Processes  of  Manufacture 34 

VII.     The  Maiolica  of  Spain 38 

VIII.     The  Maiolica  of  Mexico 46 

IX.     The  Tin  Enameled  Tiles  of  Mexico 82 

X.     Marks  on  Mexican  Maiolica 98 

XI.     Forgeries  and  Reproductions 100 

XII.     Recapitulation 104 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 


Maiolica  Vase,  Puebla,  about  1800.    Colored  Plate.    Frontispiece. 

PAGE 

i.     Hispano-Moresque  Maiolica.     Boston  Museum  of  Fine  Arts 39 

2.  Maiolica  Plate,  in  Blue,  Talavera,  Spain 40 

3.  Maiolica  Tazza,  in  Polychrome,  Talavera,  Spain 43 

4.  Maiolica  Deep  Bowl,  in  Polychrome,  Talavera,  Spain.     Collection 

of  Mrs.  Robert  W.  de  Forest opp.  44 

5.  Maiolica  Deep  Bowl,  in  Polychrome,  Talavera,  Spain opp.  44 

6.  Maiolica  Dish,  in  Blue,  Genoa,  Italy 44 

7.  Maiolica  Lavabo,   in   Blue,    Showing  Moorish   Influence,   Puebla, 

about  1650 48 

8.  Maiolica  Bowl,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1685 51 

9.  Maiolica  Bowl,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1680 52 

10.  Maiolica  Jardiniere,  in   Blue,   Puebla,  about   1680.     Collection  of 

Sehor  Rafael  Cervantes   53 

11.  Maiolica  Basin,   in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1680.     Collection  of  Mr. 

Albert  Pepper   54 

12.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1680 55 

13.  Maiolica  Jars,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  1700-1750 56 

14.  Maiolica  Jar,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1700.     With  Iron  Cover  and 

Lock    57 

15.  Maiolica  Drug  Jars,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  1700-1750 opp.  58 

16.  Maiolica  Ink  Stands,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1750  58 

17.  Maiolica  Ink  Stands,  in  Blue  and  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1750, 

1800 58 

18.  Maiolica   Vase,    in    Blue,    Puebla,    1650-1700.      Collection   of   Mr. 

Albert  Pepper   63 

19.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  1650-1700  64 

20.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1660 opp.  64 

21.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1700 65 

22.  Maiolica  Bath  Tub,  or  Cistern,  in  Blue,   Puebla,   1650-1680   (End 

View )   66 

23.  Maiolica  Basin,  in  Blue  and  Brown,  Puebla,  about  1660 opp.  66 

24.  Maiolica  Barrel-Shaped  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1750.     Col- 

lection of  Mrs.  Robert  W.  de  Forest 67 

25.  Maiolica  Barrel-Shaped  Vases,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1750.     Col- 

lection of  Sehor  Rafael  Cervantes 68 

26.  Maiolica  Bowl  and  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1760 69 

27.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1700 70 

28.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  about  1700 71 

7 


8  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

29.  Maiolica  Vase,  in  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1800 73 

30.  Maiolica  Drug  Jars,  in  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1830 74 

31.  Maiolica  Bowl,  in  Mauve  and  Green,  Puebla.  about  1820 75 

32      Maiolica  Covered  Bowl,  in  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1820.     Col- 
lection of  Mr.  Albert  Pepper  75 

33.  Maiolica  Basin,  in  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1800.     Collection  of 

Mr.  Albert  Pepper  76 

34.  Maiolica  Barrel-Shaped  Vase,  in  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1800  77 

35.  Maiolica  Basin,  in  Mauve  and  Brown,  Puebla,  about  1820 78 

36.  Maiolica  Salt  Cellars  and  Benitier,  in  Polychrome.  Puebla,  about 

1830 79 

37.  Maiolica    Cup    Holder   and   Salt    Cellar,    in    Polychrome.    Puebla, 

about  1830  80 

38.  Sgraffito  Dish,  Guanajuato,  about  1830 81 

39.  Maiolica  Tiles,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  1650-1680 opp.  82 

40.  Maiolica  Tiles,  in  Blue,  Puebla.  1650-1700 opp.  84 

41.  Maiolica  Tiles,  in  Blue,  Puebla.   1650-1700 opp.  84 

42.  Maiolica  Tile,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  1650-1700 85 

43.  Maiolica    Tile,    in    Blue,    Puebla,    1650-1700,    Showing    Aztec    In- 

fluence      86 

44.  Maiolica  Tiles,  in  Blue,  Puebla,  1650-1700  opp.  86 

45.  Facade  of  Church  of  Guadalupe,  Puebla,  about  1750 opp.  88 

46.  Maiolica  Tile  Panel  in  Fagade  of  Church  of  Guadalupe,  Puebla, 

about  1750 Color  Plate,  opp.  90 

47.  Maiolica  Tile  Panel,  in  Polychrome,  Puebla,  about  1800 opp.  90 

48.  Section  of  Tile  Dado   in   Patio  of  the   Convent  of  Santa  Rosa, 

Puebla,  about  1698  opp.  90 

49.  Section  of  Tile  Dado  in  Chapel  of  the  Rosary,  Church  of  Santo 

Domingo,  Puebla,  1690  opp.  90 

50.  Portion  of  Tile  Dado   and   Holy   Water   Font,   Church   of   Santo 

Domingo,  Puebla,  about  1690  opp.  90 

51.  Facade  of  Church  of  San  Jose,  Puebla opp.  92 

52.  Fagade  of  Church  of  San  Francisco,  Puebla,  about  1750 opp.  92 

53.  Portion   of  Tile   Frieze   in    Fagade  of   Church   of   San   Francisco, 

Puebla,  about  1 750  93 

54.  Tile  Lavatory  in  Church  of  San  Francisco,  Puebla,  about  1750,  opp.  94 

55.  Maiolica  Tile,  in  Blue  and  Yellow,  Church  of  San  Miguel,  Puebla, 

Color  Plate,  opp.  94 

56.  Tile  Panel  in  Dado  of  Choir,  Church  at  Churubusco.  1678.... opp.  96 

57.  Fagade  of  Church  of  San  Francisco  Acatepec,  near  Cholula.  .opp.  96 

58.  Portion  of  Zocalo,  Church  of  San  Francisco  Acatepec opp.  96 

59.  Group  of  Modern  Maiolica.  by  Senor  Enrique  L.  Ventosa. . .  .opp.  100 

60.  Modern  Maiolica  Vase,  Puebla   102 

61.  Maiolica  Vase,  Decorated  in  Raised  Color,  Puebla.  about   1700....  106 


THE  MAIOLICA  OF   MEXICO 


I.     Tin  Enameled  Pottery. 

The  practice  of  glazing  or  enameling  earthenware  with 
tin,  in  combination  with  oxide  of  lead,  is  believed  to  have 
originated  in  Babylonia  or  Assyria  centuries  ago,  and  was 
adopted  by  the  potters  of  Italy  and  the  Moorish  potters 
of  Spain  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  century.  The  produc- 
tion of  maiolica,  a  variety  of  tin  enameled  pottery,  in  great 
abundance,  in  Italy  during  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  cen- 
turies, resulted  in  the  extension  of  the  manufacture  to  other 
parts  of  Europe,  where,  under  various  names,  it  continued 
to  be  made  throughout  the  two  centuries  following.  The 
Delft  wares  of  Holland  and  England;  the  stanniferous  fa- 
ience of  France,  Belgium,  Sweden,  Germany,  Hungary,  and 
Denmark,  were  almost  identical  in  body  and  glaze  with 
the  maiolica  of  Italy  and  the  Hispano-Moresque  pottery. 
Later  the  Italian  influence  made  itself  felt  in  various  parts 
of  Spain, — at  Talavera,  Alcora,  Seville  and  other  places. 

For  several  years  past  travelers  in  Mexico  have  been 
bringing  back  to  the  United  States  isolated  examples  of  tin 
enameled  pottery,  picked  up  in  out-of-the-way  places  and 
curiosity  shops,  and  believed  to  be  of  Spanish  introduction. 
These  occasional  pieces  escaped  the  scrutiny  of  experts  and 
remained  unidentified  in  private  collections  until  the  writer's 
attention  was  attracted  by  some  examples  of  what  were  de- 
scribed as  native  porcelain,  offered  for  sale  by  a  firm  in  the 
city  of  Mexico,  which  turned  out  to  be  tin  enameled  pot- 
tery. Later  several  objects  of  similar  character  were  noticed 
in  the  Boston  Museum  of  Fine  Arts,  in  a  small  collection 
of  pottery  which   had   been   gathered   together   in    Mexico 

9 


io  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

by  Dr.  Dennian  W.  Ross,  of  Cambridge,  Mass.  These 
pieces,  decorated  in  blue,  consisted  of  small  vases,  drug 
jars  and  ink-stands,  of  an  entirely  different  character  from 
the  familiar  modern  Mexican  pottery  with  which  they  were 
exhibited.  The  glaze  appeared  to  be  stanniferous  and  the 
shapes  of  the  vessels  bore  no  resemblance  to  those  of  native 
Indian  or  Mexican  production.  A  brown  painted  candle- 
stick, purchased  in  Mexico  by  Mr.  Herbert  Jaques,  of  Bos- 
ton, from  an  old  woman  who  offered  a  few  articles  for  sale 
in  front  of  one  of  the  churches,  presented  similar  character- 
istics. No  definite  information  could  be  obtained  regard- 
ing the  origin  of  these  objects.  By  some  they  were  called 
"Talavera"  ware,  because  they  were  presumably  from  the 
place  of  that  name  in  Spain,  while  others  ingeniously 
claimed  that  they  were  the  productions  of  a  noted  clay- 
worker  of  the  name  of  Talavera,  and  at  least  one  Mexican 
archaeologist  entertained  the  belief  that  the  ware  had  been 
produced  in  New  Spain  by  Japanese  or  Chinese  potters 
brought  from  the  Philippines  by  the  Dominican  friars. 
These  explanations  were  unconvincing.  Then  followed  a 
correspondence,  extending  over  several  months,  between 
the  writer  and  various  persons  in  Mexico,  which  finally  re- 
sulted in  the  interesting  discovery  that  stanniferous  faience 
had  actually  been  produced  in  that  country,  under  Spanish 
influence,  particularly  in  the  city  of  Puebla,  where  at  a 
remote  period  numerous  maiolica  factories  had  flourished. 
Further  investigation  resulted  in  the  acquisition  of  several 
characteristic  pieces  of  the  ware  for  the  Museum,  which 
served  as  a  nucleus  around  which  the  present  remarkable 
collection,  which  forms  the  basis  for  the  preparation  of  this 
monograph,  has  been  gathered. 


II.     Industrial  Activity  of  the  Spaniards  in  Mexico. 

Immediately  after  the  conquest  of  Mexico,  in  1520, 
Spain  began  to  graft  her  civilization  on  the  ruder  civiliza- 
tion of  the  New  World.  The  flower  of  her  clergy,  soldiery 
and  artisans  poured  into  the  new  El  Dorado,  where  they  at 
once  established  the  printing  press  and  introduced  the  in- 
dustrial methods  of  the  Old  World.  Factories  for  the 
manufacture  of  staple  goods  were  erected  at  many  places. 
The  natives  of  Mexico,  already  skilful  craftsmen,  soon  came 
to  excel  their  teachers  in  proficiency,  and  in  a  few  years 
New  Spain  had  become  independent  of  Europe  in  the  vari- 
ous industrial  arts.  During  the  eighty  years,  between  the 
date  of  the  Conquest  and  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
greater  progress  was  made  in  Mexico  in  literature,  archi- 
tecture, and  the  other  useful  arts,  than  in  any  other  country 
on  the  Western  Continent  in  a  similar  period. 

In  1580  "the  manufactories  of  Puebla  and  Oaxaca  were 
able  to  produce  a  good  quantity  of  silk  goods  manufactured 
from  the  raw  materials  sent  them  from  Asiatic  markets. 
The  cloth  manufactories  in  1580  consumed  12,000  arrobas 
(300,000  pounds)  of  wool,  grown  in  the  colony.  In  1582, 
according  to  Sehor  J.  G.  Icazbalceta,  there  were  manufac- 
tured in  Mexico  9000  dozens  of  naipes  (playing  cards),  a 
sad  indication  of  the  tastes  of  the  people.  These  cards  were 
held  in  higher  esteem  than  those  brought  from  Spain."* 

Referring  to  the  natural  abilities  of  the  Mexicans,  Men- 


*  Vide  Mexico  y   Su  Evolution   Social,   by   Don   Justo    Sierra. 
Mexico,  1901.    Vol.  II,  p.  125. 


11 


12 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


dieta,  writing  in  1580- 1596.  states*  that  "after  they  became 
Christians  and  saw  our  images  from  Flanders  and  Italy, 
there  is  no  altar  ornament  or  image,  however  beautiful 
it  may  be,  that  they  will  not  reproduce  and  imitate.  There 
were  artisans  in  pottery  and  clay  vessels  for  eating  and  drink- 
ing purposes,  and  these  were  very  well  made  and  colored, 
although  the  workmen  did  not  know  how  to  glaze  them. 
But  they  soon  learned  that  from  the  first  craftsman  zvho  came 
over  from  Spain,  in  spite  of  all  he  could  do  to  guard  and  hide 
the  secret  from  them.  .  .  .  And  finally  this  may  be  under- 
stood as  a  general  rule, — that  nearly  all  the  beautiful  and 
curious  works  of  every  class  of  trades  and  arts  that  are 
now  (1596)  being  carried  forward  in  the  Indies  (at  least  in 
New  Spain,  or  Mexico)  are  being  done  and  finished  by 
the  Indians;  because  the  Spanish  masters  of  all  these  trades, 
wonderful  to  state,  do  nothing  more  than  charge  the  In- 
dians with  the  work,  telling  them  how  they  wish  it  done, 
and  the  Indians  proceed  to  do  it  in  so  perfect  a  manner 
that  it  could  not  be  bettered." 

Juan  de  Torquemadaf  quotes  from  a  royal  decree,  in 
161 4,  in  regard  to  the  enforced  labor  of  Indians  in  the 
factories  of  Mexico:  ''In  this  case  I  grant  you  discretionary 
power  and  authority  to  allow  that  (the  Indians)  may  serve 
and  hire  themselves  only  in  those  factories  already  estab- 
lished at  the  time  of  the  date  of  this  decree  in  the  cities  and 
suburbs  of  Mexico,  Puebla  and  Mechuacan,  but  under  the 
following  limitations."  This  decree  is  signed  Yo  El  Rey 
(  I.  myself,  the  King),  May  6,  1609. 

H.   H.   Bancroft,  the  historian,  states  that   "Long  be- 

*  Historic  Eclcsiastica  Indiana  obra  cscrita  a  tines  del  siglo  XVI, 
por  Fray  Geronimo  de  Mendieta.  La  publica  por  primera  Vez 
Joaquin  Garcia  Icazbalceta,  Mexico,   1K70.  p.  404. 

t  Monarquia  Indiana.  Por  Juan  de  Torquemada.  Sevilla,  1614, 
pp.  308-9. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


13 


fore  the  conquest  the  Indians  had  been  experts  in  the  manu- 
facture of  earthenware  and  pottery.  Under  Spanish  rule 
(1531-1800)  the  variety  of  design  was  greatly  increased  and 
a  larger  field  was  opened  to  them.  They  also  learned  the 
fabrication  of  glass,  and  as  this  industry  gradually  de- 
veloped, several  factories  arose,  chiefly  at  Puebla,  where 
forty-six  establishments  for  the  making  of  glass  and  pot- 
tery were  in  a  flourishing  condition  in  1793.  Subsequently 
a  decline  took  place,  and  in  the  beginning  of  this  century 
the  number  was  reduced  to  eighteen."* 

It  is  stated  by  Luis  Moreri  that  in  1753  Puebla  was  of 
importance,  "due  to  her  cloth  manufactories,  as  good  as 
those  of  Spain,  as  well  as  those  of  hats,  money  and  glass- 
ware, "f 

Don  Lucas  Alaman|  tells  us  that  in  the  year  1803  there 
were  exported  from  the  port  of  Vera  Cruz  to  various  points 
in  America  700  cases  of  pottery  from  Puebla. 


*  History  of  Mexico.     Six  vols.     1890.     Vol.  Ill,  p.  620. 

t  El  Gran  Diccionario  Historico,  6  Misceldnca  Cnriosa  de  la 
Historia  Sagrada  y  Prof  ana,  etc.  Paris,  1753.  Ten  vols.  fol.  Tomo 
I,  p.  519. 

t  Historia  de  Mejico.     Mexico,  1849-52. 


iii.     puebla,  the  centre  of  maiolica  manufacture 

in  Mexico. 

The  city  of  Puebla,  or  La  Puebla  de  los  Angeles  (the 
Town  of  the  Angels),  as  it  was  formerly  called,  situated 
about  one  hundred  and  eighty-six  kilometers  southwest  of 
the  City  of  Mexico  by  rail,  was  founded  as  a  new  city  by 
the  Spaniards  in  1531  or  1532.  Here  were  established 
some  of  the  first  manufactories  by  European  craftsmen  in 
the  New  World.  Among  these  were  numerous  glass  fac- 
tories and  potteries,  and  it  is  a  curious  fact  that  for  nearly 
three  centuries  this  city  continued  to  be  the  only  centre, 
so  far  as  we  know,  of  the  maiolica  industry  in  the  Western 
Hemisphere. 

The  following  translation  of  the  story  of  the  founding 
of  the  city  of  Puebla  is  given  by  Thomas  A.  Janvier,  in 
his  Mexican  Guide*: 

f  "Passing  by  the  tradition  that  in  ancient  times,  before 
the  blessed  light  of  Christianity  ever  shone  in  these  parts, 
the  unregenerate  heathen  saw  visions  of  angels  marshalled 
in  mighty  hosts  in  the  heavens  above  where  the  city  now 
stands,  let  us  come  at  once  to  a  stable  groundwork  of 
ascertained  fact.  In  the  year  of  our  Lord  1529  came  to 
Tlaxcala  the  illustrious  Fray  Julian  Garces,  the  first  con- 
secrated bishop  of  the  Catholic  Church  whose  feet,  shod 
with  Pontifical  holiness,  ever  trod  in  this  heathen  Edom. 
Even  before  his  coming  the  project  had  been  mooted  of 


*  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  New  York,  1890,  p.  389. 

t  Puebla  Sagrada  y  Prof  ana.  Informe  dado  a  su  muy  ilustre 
Ayuntamicnto  el  Afio  de  1746.  Por  el  M.  R.  P.  Fray  Juan  Villa 
Sanchez,  religioso  del  convento  de  Santo  Domingo. 


14 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  15 

founding  somewhere  in  these  parts  a  town  that  might  be  a 
resting-place  in  the  long  and  weary  walk  from  the  coast  to 
the  City  of  Mexico.  With  this  project  the  new  Bishop  w%s 
in  hearty  accord;  yet  was  he  uncertain  in  his  mind  as  to 
where  best  might  be  placed  the  new  town. 

"As  all  know,  it  ofttimes  happens  that  one  dreams  in 
the  night  of  those  things  of  which  one  thinks  most  by  day. 
Thus  it  was  that  one  night  this  venerable  gentleman,  being 
retired  to  the  humble  bed  upon  which  he  took  his  scanty 
rest,  dreamed  a  prophetic  dream.  In  his  vision,  while  his 
spirit  was  controlled  by  a  superior  power,  he  beheld  a  most 
beautiful  plain  (hermosisima  vegd)  bounded  by  the  great  slope 
of  the  volcanoes  westward,  broken  by  two  little  hills  a 
league  asunder,  dotted  by  many  springs,  and  cut  by  two 
rivers  which  gave  abundant  water  and  made  all  things  fresh 
and  green.  And  as  he  gazed,  in  pleased  amazement,  at 
this  charming  place,  lo!  he  saw  two  angels  who  with  line 
and  rod  measured  bounds  and  distances  upon  the  ground — 
as  do  those  who  plan  the  founding  of  great  buildings  and 
mark  where  shall  be  wide  streets  and  open  squares.  And 
having  beheld  this  vision,  the  Bishopx  awoke. 

"Straightway  he  set  himself,  that  very  hour,  to  search- 
ing for  the  site  that,  as  his  vision  had  shown  him,  was 
chosen  of  the  angels.  And  as  he  walked,  being,  no  doubt, 
divinely  ordered  in  his  goings,  he  came  to  the  very  plain 
that  he  had  seen  in  his  dream.  Then  gladly  he  exclaimed: 
'This  is  the  site  that  the  Lord  has  chosen  through  his  holy 
angels;  and  here,  to  His  glory,  shall  the  city  be!'  "  And  on 
this  spot,  at  the  feet  of  the  great  mountains,  Popocatepetl 
and  Ixtaccihuatl,  was  built  La  Puebla  de  los  Angeles,  which 
during  the  three  and  three-quarters  centuries  of  its  ex- 
istence, has  grown  to  be  a  city  of  some  98,000  inhabitants, 
and  one  of  the  foremost  manufacturing  centres  in  the  pres- 
ent Republic  of  Mexico. 


16  MAI0L1CA   OF  MUX  ICO 

At  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  according 
to  Juan  N.  Del  Valle,*  "Puebla  was  already  a  beautiful  city, 
in  which  were  reunited  all  material  beauties  which  can  be 
produced  by  the  combination  of  wealth  and  good  taste. 
On  the  other  hand  the  native  talent  of  her  sons  for  the 
useful  arts  was  revealed  each  day  more  and  more,  in  ex- 
cellent weaves  of  wool  and  cotton,  in  pottery  and  glassware 
and  in  many  other  handicrafts  which  in  those  times  might 
well  sustain  a  comparison  with  the  products  of  Europe. 
.  .  .  The  pottery  of  Puebla  has  been  so  perfected  that  with 
satisfaction  we  have  seen  pieces  that  rivaled  foreign  pottery, 
in  form  as  well  as  in  design." 

Thomas  Gage,  who  was  in  Puebla  in  1625,  writing  in 
i648f,  says  concerning  its  manufactures  at  that  time:  "This 
City  of  the  Angels  is  now  thought  to  consist  of  ten  thou- 
sand inhabitants.  That  which  maketh  it  most  famous  is 
the  Cloth  which  is  made  in  it,  and  is  sent  far  and  near, 
and  judged  now  to  be  as  good  as  the  Cloth  of  Segovia,  which 
is  the  best  that  is  made  in  Spain,  but  now  is  not  so  much 
esteemed  of,  nor  sent  so  much  from  Spain  to  America,  by 
reason  of  the  abundance  of  fine  Cloth  which  is  made  in 
this  City  of  the  Angels.  The  felts  likewise  that  are  made  are 
the  best  of  all  that  country.  There  is  likewise  a  Glass  house, 
which  is  there  a  rarity,  none  other  being  as  yet  known  in 
those  parts.  But  the  Mint-house  that  is  in  it,  where  is 
coyned  half  the  Silver  that  cometh  from  Sacatecas,  makes 
it  second  to  Mexico;  and  it  is  thought  that  in  time  it  will 
be  as  great  and  populous  as  Mexico." 

Reverendo  Padre  Fray  Augustin  de  Vetancurt  states 
(Tratado  de  la  Ciudad  de  la  Puebla,  page  47)1  that  "In  the 

*  Guia  de  Forasteros  de  la  Capital  de  Puebla  para  cl  ano  de  1842. 

If  A  New  Survey  of  the  Indies.    London,  1648. 

t  Teatro  Mexicano  Description  Breve  de  los  Sucessos  Exemplares 
Historicos,  Politicos,  Militates,  y  Religiosos  del  Nuevo  Mundo  Occi- 
dental de  las  Indias,    Mexico,   1698. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  17 

city  of  Puebla  are  to  be  found  all  the  industries  which  go 
to  make  up  a  Republic,  and  in  glazed  earthenware,  glass- 
ware, cutlery  and  soap,  they  surpass  all  the  rest  in  New 
Spain.  The  glazed  pottery  is  finer  than  that  of  Talabera, 
and  can  compete  with  that  of  China  in  its  fineness.  The 
glassware,  although  not  so  fine,  is  like  that  of  Venice.  The 
temper  of  their  knives  and  scissors  exceeds  that  of  all  others, 
like  the  blades  of  Toledo."  This  shows  that  glazed  pottery 
was  being  made  in  Puebla  previous  to  1690,  since  the  first 
"Licencia"  in  the  book  is  dated  Madrid,  April  17,  1692, 
at  which  time  the  industry  had  already  reached  a  high 
state  of  excellence. 

The  same  writer  remarks  that  "there  were  (among  the 
Indians)  artisans  who  made  pots  and  large  and  small  jars 
of  clay  and  crocks,  painted  and  very  ornamental.  But  they 
did  not  learn  how  to  glaze  their  zvares  until  the  Spaniards 
showed  them,  and  now  they  make  clay  pottery  of  various 
and  pleasing  designs."* 

Fray  Juan  Villa  Sanchez, f  writing  in  1745,  states  that 
"Glassware  forms  part  of  the  commerce  of  Puebla,  which 
is  not  equaled  in  any  other  part  of  the  kingdom.  If  it 
does  not  compete  with  that  of  Venice  it  at  least  equals  that 
of  France;  thick,  smooth,  clean  and  very  clear,  and  it  is 
made  in  pieces  of  exquisite  workmanship.  The  pottery,  of 
which  great  quantities  are  made  in  Puebla,  is  similar  to  the 
glassware,  being  so  fine  and  beautiful  that  it  equals  or  ex- 
cels that  of  Talavera,  or  of  Cartagena  of  the  Indies,  the 
ambition  of  the  Puebla  potters  being  to  emulate  and  equal 
the  beauty  of  the  wares  of  China.  There  is  a  great  demand 
for  this  product,  especially  for  the  most  ordinary  qualities, 
which  are  most  in  demand  throughout  the  kingdom." 


*  Ibid.    Vol.  I,  p.  60. 

^Puebla  Sagrada  y  Prof  ana.     Puebla,   1746. 


IV.    A  Potters'  Guild  in  Puebla. 

No  previous  writer,  so  far  as  we  are  aware,  has  made 
any  reference  to  the  existence  of  trade  guilds  in  Mexico 
during  the  seventeenth  century.  The  remarkable  develop- 
ment of  certain  industries  in  Puebla  within  a  century  or 
so  after  the  conquest  of  the  country  by  Spain  would  natu- 
rally lead  us  to  suppose  that  some  sort  of  organization 
for  the  mutual  protection  and  aid  of  craftsmen  in  various 
branches  of  art  should  have  been  attempted,  since  we  know 
that  guilds  have  existed  in  Europe  from  the  seventh  cen- 
tury. It  was  believed  that  if  any  record  of  such  associa- 
tions should  have  been  preserved  it  would  probably  be  found 
among  the  archives  of  the  city.  The  Rev.  Francis  S. 
Borton,  a  student  of  Mexican  bibliography,  was  employed 
by  this  Museum  to  search  the  official  manuscripts,  which, 
after  obtaining  the  necessary  permission  from  the  Ayunta- 
miento,  or  Council  of  the  city,  he  proceeded  to  do.  The 
results  of  his  investigations  proved  to  be  even  more  grati- 
fying than  had  been  expected.  It  was  found  that  a  pot- 
ters' guild  had  in  reality  existed  in  Puebla  between  the 
years  1653  and  1676,  and  that  a  code  of  laws  for  the  regula- 
tion of  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  pottery  had  been 
enacted.  Dr.  Borton  has  transcribed  and  translated  these 
ancient  laws,  which,  since  they  throw  much  light  on  the 
history  of  the  art,  we  give  here  in  full. 

EXTRACTS  FROM  THE  LAWS  FOR  THE  TRADE  GUILDS.      FOLIO, 

VELLUM    BINDING,    MS.     1653-1676.       ARCHIVES    OF 

THE  CITY  OF  LA  PUEBLA  DE  LOS  ANGELES 

(LAWS    FOR    THE    POTTERS). 

I  st.  No  person  may  practice  the  trade  of  a  potter  with- 
out being  examined  in  that  trade  by  the  Alcaldes  and  In- 

18 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  19 

spectors,  which  officials  shall  be  nominated  and  elected 
to  their  office  by  the  master  workmen  of  the  guild. 

To  that  end  each  year  their  names  shall  be  put  down 
and  their  election  shall  be  verified  before  a  notary.  And 
this  election  shall  be  in  the  presence  of  a  Justice  and  shall 
be  sworn  to.  And  the  Justice  shall  give  the  Alcaldes  and 
Inspectors-elect  power  to  visit  the  stores  and  work-shops, 
and  to  condemn  the  work  which  is  found  not  to  be  in  ac- 
cord with  the  tenor  of  the  following  articles. 

2d.  That  taking  into  consideration  the  fact  that  to-day 
there  is  not  a  single  master  workman  (of  the  potters'  guild) 
who  has  passed  an  examination  and  that  until  the  present 
there  have  never  been  any  laws  for  the  examination  and 
government  of  potters:  therefore  we  have  been  nominated 
for  that  position;  we  are  to  be  the  examiners.  By  virtue  of 
our  nominations  as  experts  in  pottery  making  we  have  been 
approved  and  are  examiners  according  to  the  law. 

3d.  No  negro,  mulatto,  nor  person  of  mixed  blood  can 
be  allowed  to  take  the  examination  for  a  master  potter. 
The  provisions  of  this  article  must  be  strictly  complied  with. 

4th.  That  in  order  to  justify  the  existing  laws  no  per- 
sons who  have  not  been  examined  (as  mentioned)  shall 
work  at  the  potter's  trade,  or  possess  pottery-stores  or  pot- 
teries. 

Such  persons  there  may  be  who  pretend  to  have  these 
rights  for  a  limited  time,  and  that  they  were  exempt  from 
the  examination.  All  which  is  greatly  against  the  interests 
of  all  real  master  potters.  No  Judge  shall  grant  such  a 
license  to  any  person  whatsoever,  nor  shall  the  Alcaldes  or 
Inspectors  either  tacitly  or  expressly  permit  such  persons 
(unexamined)  to  have  potteries,  under  whatsoever  pretext 
or  excuse  or  palliation. 

5th.  There  shall  be  known  three  classes  of  pottery,  the 
fine,  the  common  and  the  yellow,  such  as  jars,  pots,  vases, 


20  MAIOLICA   OF  MEXICO 

pans,  strainers,  etc.  No  one  can  manufacture  pottery,  either 
fine  or  common,  without  passing-  the  examination  required 
in  the  kind  of  pottery  he  expects  to  make.  He  may  only 
make  the  kind  in  whose  manufacture  he  is  examined,  unless 
perchance  his  examination  has  been  on  all  (three  kinds). 

6th.  The  widow  of  a  master  potter  may  continue  his 
plant  and  shop,  and  none  may  interfere  with  her  right;  and 
the  son  of  a  master  potter  can  continue  the  business  of  his 
deceased  father  for  three  years  without  being  examined, 
but  at  the  end  of  that  time  he  must  be  examined. 

7th.  All  master  potters  who  have  been  examined  shall 
familiarize  themselves  with  these  laws,  so  that  they  shall 
be  able  to  comply  with  them,  and  not  plead  ignorance. 

8th.  For  the  making  of  said  pottery  the  following  rules 
are  to  be  observed. 

1.  First  the  clay  from  which  the  various  kinds  of  pot- 
tery are  to  be  made  must  be  well  sifted  and  cleaned,  in 
order  that  it  may  obtain  the  proper  baking  and  perfection 
necessary  for  its  durability. 

2.  The  glaze  for  the  fine  pottery  must  be  properly 
mixed  and  treated;  to  one  arroba  (25  lbs.)  of  lead  add  six 
pounds  of  tin,  and  these  must  be  well  mixed  and  baked. 
If  the  ware  is  to  be  painted,  it  must  first  be  decorated  with 
black,  in  order  that  its  beauty  may  shine  out,  and  each 
piece  must  be  of  an  equal  thickness  in  its  parts. 

3.  All  the  common  and  white  pottery  shall  have  a  glaze 
made  of  one  arroba  of  lead,  and  two  pounds  of  tin  well 
mingled  and  carefully  prepared.  In  this  common  pottery 
are  to  be  included  white,  medium,  and  painted,  in  all  sorts 
of  vessels. 

4.  The  glazing  should  correspond  with  the  different 
wares,  and  should  also  be  well  ground,  very  liquid  and  with- 
out impurities,  so  that  the  ware  of  whatever  class  may  be 
durable  and  honestly  made. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  21 

5.  Ordinary  plates  for  the  table  should  have  a  fourth 
of  border,  in  fine  ware  as  well  as  in  the  common,  and  these 
plates  should  not  exceed  in  thickness  the  edge  of  a  real, 
and  there  should  be  an  equal  thickness  in  all  parts:  because 
in  this  combination  results  less  facility  in  breaking  and 
chipping  and  more  facility  in  boxing  and  shipping.  For, 
otherwise,  well  known  bad  results  follow.  This  degree  and 
union  of  qualities  (above  mentioned)  should  be  understood 
as  applying  to  all  classes  of  pottery  generally. 

6.  All  ordinary  bowls  (cups  (?))*  should  be  from  edge  to 
edge  an  eighth  (of  a  vara:f — 4^  inches).  In  the  finer  pot- 
tery other  dimensions  may  be  used,  such  as  are  to  the  taste 
of  potter  and  purchaser.  Of  course  one  knows  that  the 
coarse  ware  will  not  answer  the  purposes  of  the  finer. 

7.  In  order  to  avoid  all  the  perplexities  that  might 
otherwise  occur,  each  master  potter  shall  have  a  clearly 
marked  stamp  or  monogram  (for  the  wares  made  by  him), 
and  on  all  pottery  made  by  him  this  stamp  or  trade-mark 
must  appear.  Said  mark  shall  be  placed  on  the  examina- 
tion paper  of  each  master  potter,  so  that  he  may  not  deny 
being  the  maker  of  any  and  all  pottery  bearing  that  stamp. 

All  Alcaldes  and  Inspectors  shall  take  particular  pre- 
caution with  regard  to  these  private  trade-marks  that  they 
give  out,  and  not  duplicate  them. 

And  to  avoid  that,  they  should  have  a  book  in  which 
shall  be  entered  the  name  of  each  master  potter  examined 
by  them,  and  a  facsimile  of  the  particular  stamp  or  trade- 
mark issued  to  him. 

And  this  book  shall  be  passed  on  successively  to  the 
different  Alcaldes  and  Inspectors,  as  they  are  elected  year 
by  year. 


*  The  word  escudilla,  in  the  original,  means  porringer. 
f  A  vara  is  33  inches. 


)  > 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


8.  Whoever  shall  countermark  or  falsify  the  trade-mark 
of  another  shall  incur  the  penalties  provided  for  all  such 
cases,  and  shall  suffer  both  in  his  person  and  in  his  goods. 

9.  For  the  annoyances  arising  from  the  practice  just 
mentioned  prejudice  very  seriously  the  interests  not  only 
of  the  community  but  of  the  master  potters  also;  because 
under  pretext  of  helping  the  falsifying  potters  there  are 
persons  who,  seeing  their  necessity,  sell  them  the  prime  ma- 
terials at  increased  prices,  and  then  allow  the  said  potters 
to  pay  them  in  pottery. 

Thus  these  persons  go  about  gathering  up  and  monopo- 
lizing large  quantities  of  this  inferior  pottery,  and  afterward 
sell  it  at  exorbitant  prices. 

And  as  this  spurious  ware  is  neither  finished  nor  baked 
as  it  should  be,  the  speculators  carry  it  to  different  parts 
where  they  sell  it  or  trade  it  for  merchandise. 

And  those  who  buy  it  find  themselves  deceived,  and 
from  this  results  injury  to  the  purchasers  and  discredit  to  the 
legitimate  master  potters. 

So  it  is  prohibited  to  all  persons  to  buy  said  pottery 
with  the  object  of  re-selling  it  under  whatever  pretext. 
Only  the  master  potters  can  sell  it  in  their  houses,  or  in 
public  shops,  and  the  market  places, — but  not  in  the  streets, 
to  avoid  the  robberies  to  which  the  master  potters  are  there 
subject. 

The  penalty  for  transgressing  this  law  shall  be  a  fine 
of  twenty  dollars,  of  which  one-fourth  shall  go  to  the  Ex- 
chequer, one-fourth  to  the  Denouncer,  one-fourth  to  the 
Judge,  and  one-fourth  to  the  expenses  and  conservation  of 
the  potters'  guild. 

The  above  is  the  penalty  for  the  first  infringement;  for 
the  second  offence  the  fine  shall  be  doubled,  and  for  the 
third  offence  the  culprit  shall  be  left  to  the  discretion  of  the 
Judge. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  23 

10.  When  an  apprentice  shall  have  finished  the  time 
during  which  his  master  was  obligated  to  instruct  him,  he 
shall  go  before  the  Alcaldes  and  the  Inspectors  to  show 
what  he  has  learned;  and  if  he  be  found  deficient,  according 
to  the  declaration  of  said  Inspectors  who  have  examined 
him,  then  he  shall  go  to  the  Justice  to  implore  that  his 
teacher  be  compelled  to  finish  his  instruction  at  his  (the 
master's)  expense. 

In  the  manner  set  forth  we  have  made  and  do  make 
laws  for  all  the  faithful  of  our  potters'  guild,  that  they  may 
govern  themselves  thereby;  and  we  protest  that  whenever 
time  and  experience  shall  demonstrate  that  it  would  be 
for  the  advantage  of  the  guild  to  add  other  sections  to  these 
set  forth,  it  may  be  done. 

And  we  swear  by  God  and  the  Cross  that  these  laws 
have  been  framed  without  any  fraud  or  any  ulterior  motives. 

And  we  herewith  sign  our  names,  with  the  exception 
of  Andres  de  Haro  who  does  not  know  how  to  write. 

Done  in  the  City  of  Los  Angeles  of  New  Spain,  May 
10,  1653. 

Diego   Salvador   Carreto 
Damian    Hernandez 

Continueth: 

And  Seiior  the  Duke  of  Albuquerque  governing  this 
New  Spain,  approved  and  confirmed  said  laws,  sending  his 
mandate  on  June  30,  1659. 

And  now  Juan  Felix  Galvez  (in  the  name  of  Diego 
Salvador  Carreto,  a  master  potter,  and  in  the  name  of  the 
other  master  potters,  and  the  Potters'  Guild,  citizens  of 
the  City  of  Los  Angeles),  represented  to  me  (the  under- 
signed), that  in  order  that  said  laws,  herewithin  inserted, 
might  be  guarded  and  observed, — he  begged  me  to  be 
pleased  to  order  that  said  laws  should  be  cried  in  said  City 


24 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


of  the  Angels,  and  that  they  should  be  copied  in  the  books 
of  the  Corporation  of  that  city. 

Of  which  I  ordered  notice  to  be  given  to  the  Attorney 
General,  Serior  Dr.  Don  Manuel  Escalante  y  Mendoza, 
Knight  of  the  Order  of  St.  James,  who  gave  the  following 
reply: — 

Most  Excellent  Sir: — 

His  Majesty's  Attorney  General  says  that  by  per- 
mission of  your  Excellency,  he  will  concede  to  the  Petitioner 
the  insertion  of  the  mandate  among  the  laws,  which  is  what 
he  asks. 

Mexico,  March  23,  1662.  Don  Manuel  de  Escalante 
y  Mendoza. 

Upon  which  the  correspondence  was  all  sent  by  Licenti- 
ate Don  Alonso  de  Alvarez  Pinelo,  Advocate  of  the  Royal 
Audience,  to  the  Assessor  General,  in  order  that  he  might, 
as  he  afterward  did,  give  his  opinion  in  the  case,  which 
was  as  follows: — 

Opinion: — 

Most  Excellent  Senor: — 

May  it  please  you  to  order  that  the  wishes  of  the 
petitioners  be  granted,  in  accordance  with  the  ruling  of  the 
Attorney  General. 
Mexico,  March  26,   1662. 

Licentiate  Don  Alonso  de  Alvarez. 


As  for  the  rest  of  the  matter,  in  conformity  with  the 
above  expressed  Opinion  (of  the  Assessor)  for  the  present, 
I  approve  and  confirm  these  laws  herein  inserted,  and  order 
the  Justices,  the  Corporation  and  the  Aldermen  of  the  City 
of  Los  Angeles,  that  they  procure  that  said  laws  be  guarded, 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  25 

and  kept  and  executed  in  all  and  their  several  parts,  both  in 
their  letter  and  spirit;  and  that  said  authorities  shall  have 
said  laws  written  in  the  book  of  ordinances,  and  in  the  books 
of  the  deputation,  in  order  that  there  may  be  knowledge 
(of  said  laws)  forever,  and  I  also  order  that  said  laws  shall 
be  cried  publicly  in  the  usual  places  in  the  city,  that  said 
laws  may  be  observed,  and  that  to  the  crier  be  delivered  the 
original  of  this  mandate. 

Mexico,  March  28,   1662. 

The  Marquis  Count  of  Vafios, 
By  order  of  his  Excellency 

Don  Pedro  Velasquez  de  la  Cadena. 
Petition: — 

Antonio  Marques  of  Santillana  (Spain),  Roque  of 
Talavera  (Spain),  and  Jose  Ramos, — master  potters  all  in 
the  business  of  a  potter  in  white  ware,  residents  in  this  city 
of  Los  Angeles,  appear  before  your  worships  and  set  forth 
the  following: — 

That  in  order  to  know  and  understand  what  we  should 
do  in  our  art  and  trade — it  would  be  a  very  great  favor  to 
our  Potters'  Guild  if  the  present  most  excellent  and  honor- 
able Corporation  would  hand  over  to  us  the  originals  of 
those  laws  that  relate  to  our  trade  and  office,  and  stating 
what  are  all  our  rights,  privileges  and  obligations.  Of 
course  in  the  hands  of  the  Corporation  would  remain  all 
necessary  public  and  attested  evidence  that  the  original 
laws  had  been  entrusted  to  us  of  the  Potters'  Guild. 

For  which  we  beg  and  entreat  your  worships  that  you 
be  pleased  to  order  that  said  laws  relating  to  potters  be 
given  to  us,  and  that  the  public  notary  here  make  a  note  of 
the  same  in  due  and  proper  form,  and  that  said  laws  be  pub- 
licly cried,  according  to  the  mandate  given  by  the  Supreme 
Government  of  this  New  Spain.     And  may  it  be  included 


26 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


in  said  laws,  that  justice  be  done  to  all  concerned, — which 
is  what  we  ask. 

And  now  we  put  an  end  to  this  writing,  according  to 
all  necessary  forms,  etc.,  etc. 

Antonio  Marques  of  Santillana,  Spain. 

Roque  of  Talavera,  Spain. 

Antonio  de  Galvez,  Solicitor. 

Public  Notice: — 

In  the  City  of  Los  Angeles  on  August  22  of  1676,  being 
met  in  the  gateway  of  the  ordinary  common  court,  with 
a  great  concourse  of  people  assisting, — after  a  trumpet  had 
been  sounded, — by  the  voice  of  Juan  Flores  the  public  crier, 
in  loud  and  clear  tones  was  cried  the  mandate,  set  forth 
on  the  sheets  preceding  this,  on  the  part  of  the  most  ex- 
cellent Senor  Marquis  Count  of  Bolafios,  who  was  formerly 
Viceroy  of  this  New  Spain, — in  which  public  crying  were 
also  included  the  laws  for  potters  in  fine,  common  and  yel- 
low ware. 

And  witnesses  of  this  act  were  Don  Francisco  Solano, 
one  of  his  Majesty's  notaries;  Diego  de  Avina,  and  Jose  del 
Castillo,  these  being  present  in  person,  together  with  many 
other  people. 

All  of  which  I  certify  to  be  true. 

The  Notary. 
In  my  presence: — 

Miguel  Zenon  Zapata,  Notary  for  the  Crown  and  for 
the  Corporation. 


A  few  explanations. 

1  st.  The  common  pottery.  Plates  and  cups  painted  in 
poor  blue;  the  porcelains  and  large  plates  painted  in  the 
manner  that  we  call  "aborronado"  (blurred,  blotted);  and 
this  should  be  in  blue  and  two  other  colors;  and  then  the 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  27 

common  white  ware  with  a  stamp  or  maker's  trade-mark 
only  that  it  may  be  recognized,  as  in  the  case  of  all  classes 
of  ware. 

2d.  The  fine  pottery.  In  the  fine  ware  the  armados 
(groundwork  (?))  should  be  painted  in  blue  and  finished  in 
black  with  dots  along  the  borders  and  edges  of  all  ware 
painted  in  this  style. 

And  in  order  that  there  may  be  variety,  the  other  style 
of  decoration  for  this  fine  ware  shall  be  in  imitation  of  the 
Talavera  ware,  or  figures  and  designs  in  colors,  shading 
them  with  all  the  five  colors  used  in  the  art.  The  manu- 
facture of  this  fine  ware  shall  be  with  the  greatest  neatness 
and  cleanliness  possible.  Each  piece  should  be  baked  in 
its  own  pedano  or  casuela*  and  the  kiln  should  be  charged 
the  same,  and  the  baking  should  be  the  same  as  for  the 
common  ware.  For  the  merit  of  the  fine  ware  consists  in 
the  superior  cleanliness  of  its  preparation,  and  finish.  But 
fine  ware  must  not  be  baked,  not  a  piece  of  it,  with 
caballitosf  ("little  horses")  nor  sicoles;f  only  in  the  baking  of 
ordinary  ware  was  such  an  inartistic  process  thought  of  and 
permitted. 

3d.  Also  in  making  the  fine  wares  the  coloring  should 
be  in  imitation  of  the  Chinese  ware,  very  blue,  finished  in 
the  same  style  and  with  relief  work  in  blue,  and  on  this 
style  of  pottery  there  should  be  painted  black  dots  and 
grounds  in  colors. 

From  the  foregoing  laws  regulating  the  pottery  in- 
dustry in  Puebla,  taken  from  the  archives  of  that  city,  we 
learn  that  in  the  year  1653  the  manufacture  of  maiolica  in 
Mexico  had  already  reached  such  a  stage  of  importance  that 


*  Seggars. 

t  Clay  supports  used  under  and  around  the  cheap  wares  in  stack- 
ing them  in  the  kiln. 


28  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

it  was  deemed  necessary  to  formulate  rules  for  the  protec- 
tion of  the  potters  themselves  and  the  maintenance  of  the 
standard  of  their  wares.  The  statement  that  at  that  time 
there  was  not  a  single  master  workman  of  the  guild  who 
had  passed  an  examination  and  that  there  had  never  been 
any  laws  providing  for  the  examination  and  government  of 
potters  clearly  indicates  that  the  pottery  industry  had 
flourished  in  Puebla  for  some  time  previous.  We  may  there- 
fore believe  that  the  art  of  maiolica  manufacture  had  been 
established  in  New  Spain  at  least  as  early  as  the  end  of 
the  sixteenth  century. 

The  first  examiners  of  the  guild  were  Diego  Salvador 
Carreto,  Damian  Hernandez  and  Andres  de  Haro.  The 
rules  they  formulated  were  intended  to  regulate  the  quality 
of  the  various  grades  of  ware,  the  sizes  of  plates,  bowls,  etc., 
and  provided  for  the  stamping  of  individual  marks  on  the 
ware,  by  which  the  products  of  different  potters  should  be 
known.  The  penalties  for  transgressing  these  laws  were 
clearly  set  forth. 

A  few  years  later  (apparently  in  1662)  Antonio  Mar- 
ques, of  Santillana,  Spain,  Roque  of  Talavera,  Spain,  and 
Jose  Ramos,  master  potters  of  Puebla,  representing  the 
guild,  petitioned  the  city  to  turn  over  to  the  guild  the 
originals  of  the  laws  relating  to  the  trade,  setting  forth 
the  rights,  privileges  and  obligations  of  potters.  The  pe- 
titioners, it  will  be  noted,  were  Spanish  potters  from  Santil- 
lana and  Talavera,  who,  having  learned  their  trade  in  Spain, 
had  become  leading  members  of  the  craft  in  Mexico.  It  is 
reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  methods  employed  in  Spain 
would  be  continued  by  these  workmen  in  their  new  field  of 
labor  and  in  support  of  this  supposition  we  find  in  the  de- 
scription of  the  various  wares  specified  in  the  laws  of  the 
guild  that  one  style  of  decoration  for  the  finest  ware  was 
to  be  in  imitation  of  the  Talavera  ware,  the  designs  of  which 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  29 

were  to  be  in  colors  shaded  with  all  the  five  colors  used  in 
the  art. 

At  this  early  date  we  find  that  the  influence  of  the 
Chinese  potters  had  already  made  itself  felt,  for  it  was  also 
specified  that,  in  order  to  give  variety  to  the  best  wares, 
the  coloring  should  also  be  "in  imitation  of  the  Chinese 
ware,  very  blue,  finished  in  the  same  style  and  with  relief 
work  in  blue."  This  reference  to  Chinese  ware  shows  that 
Oriental  porcelain  must  have  been  imported  in  considerable 
quantities  into  Mexico  previous  to  1653,  fully  a  century 
before  trade  relations  of  any  importance  were  established 
between  China  and  the  American  Colonies,  now  the  United 
States  of  America,  for  while  it  is  true  that  in  New  England 
a  limited  amount  of  imported  table  ware  was  owned  by 
wealthy  people,  as  early  as  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  we  have  no  evidence  that  decorative  pieces,  such 
as  vases,  found  their  way  into  the  British  Colonies  to  the 
north  of  Mexico  until  well  into  the  eighteenth  century. 

These  manuscript  laws  for  the  guild  throw  much  light 
on  the  nature  of  the  wares  produced  in  the  latter  half  of 
the  seventeenth  century  in  Mexico.  The  clay  was  to  be 
most  carefully  prepared.  The  composition  of  the  glaze  was 
definitely  prescribed, — six  pounds  of  tin  to  twenty-five 
pounds  of  lead  for  the  fine  ware,  and  for  the  common  pot- 
tery two  parts  of  tin  to  twenty-five  parts  of  lead.  The 
groundwork  of  one  variety  of  fine  ware  was  to  be  painted 
in  blue  finished  in  black  with  dots  along  the  borders  and 
edges,  and  in  imitating  Chinese  porcelains  the  decorations 
were  to  be  painted  with  black  dots  and  colored  grounds. 

We  are  somewhat  at  a  loss  to  explain  the  meaning  of 
the  instructions  which  required  the  groundwork  of  certain 
fine  ware  to  be  painted  in  blue.  We  have  not  met  with  a 
single  example  so  treated.  The  early  maiolica  vases  do 
not  appear  to  have  ever  been  painted  with  a  solid  dark  blue 


3o  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

ground,  although  in  some  there  are  borders  and  panels,  or 
medallions,  with  reserved  designs  in  white  in  a  blue  ground. 
The  nearest  approach  to  this  style  of  work  is  shown  in  the 
vase  illustrated  in  the  text  cut,  No.  18.  Some  of  the  early- 
tiles  were  also  treated  in  like  manner  (see  illustration  39). 
Among  the  best  examples  of  this  character  are  the  tiles 
of  the  old  church  of  San  Miguel,  Puebla,  in  which  the  re- 
served figures  are  colored  yellow  and  orange  (see  illustra- 
tion 55).  But  even  in  these  somewhat  rare  examples  the 
ground  is  irregular  and  mottled,  according  to  the  uneven 
application  and  varying  depth  of  the  blue  enamel.  It  is 
true  that  one  variety  of  ware  was  covered  with  an  even, 
thin  ground  of  pale,  grayish  blue,  but  such  pieces  were  not 
produced  until  the  nineteenth  century  and  belong  to  the 
period  of  decadence. 

We  are  even  more  puzzled  to  understand  what  was 
meant  by  finishing  the  designs  with  black  dots  along  bor- 
ders and  edges.  Not  a  single  piece  so  treated  seems  to  have 
come  to  light,  and  we  can  only  conclude  that  this  rule  was 
not  literally  observed  by  the  potters.  Many  pieces,  how- 
ever, are  found  in  which  the  outlines  are  accentuated  by 
the  use  of  blue  dots,  particularly  those  in  the  Chinese  style. 

The  most  important  law  was  that  concerning  trade- 
marks. Each  master  potter  was  required  to  use  a  clearly 
marked  stamp  or  monogram  on  all  pieces  of  ware  made  by 
him  and  this  individual  mark  was  to  be  attached  to  his  ex- 
amination paper.  Inspectors  were  charged  to  exercise  the 
greatest  precaution  against  duplicating  these  distinguishing 
marks,  which  were  to  be  recorded  in  a  book  with  the  names 
of  the  potters  to  whom  they  had  been  issued. 

How  long  these  laws  were  in  force  we  have  no  means 
of  ascertaining,  but  it  is  apparent  that  they  were  in  opera- 
tion at  least  throughout  the  third  quarter  of  the  seventeenth 
century.     During  that  period,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  all  pro- 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


3i 


ducts  of  the  Puebla  potteries  were  marked  with  some  dis- 
tinguishing device.  Such  pieces  are  now  rare,  but  several 
examples  bearing  the  initials  or  monograms  of  the  makers, 
painted  in  blue,  may  be  seen  in  the  Museum  collection  (see 
chapter  on  Marks). 


V.     Pueblan  Potters. 

As  we  have  already  seen,  the  pottery  industry  was  of 
sufficient  importance  in  Puebla  in  1653,  to  require  the  pas- 
sage of  laws  for  the  government  of  potters,  but  there  ap- 
pear to  be  no  records  which  throw  light  on  the  extent  of 
the  manufacture  of  maiolica  or  the  number  of  craftsmen 
engaged  therein.  From  the  laws  for  the  potters  we  learn 
that  in  the  year  above  mentioned  Diego  Salvador  Carreto, 
Damian  Hernandez  and  Andres  de  Haro  were  prominent 
members  of  the  craft,  and  that  in  1662  Antonio  Marques,  of 
Santillana,  Spain,  one  Roque  of  Talavera,  Spain,  and  Jose 
Ramos  were  master  potters  in  Puebla.  It  is  not  probable 
that  these  were  the  first  clay  workers  sent  from  Spain,  as 
evidence  is  not  lacking  that  the  fictile  art  had  been  practiced 
in  Mexico  by  Europeans  for  fully  fifty  years  before  the  es- 
tablishment of  the  guild.  In  addition  to  the  Spanish  potters 
there  were  numerous  native  workers  in  clay,  some  of  whom 
learned  the  art  of  glazing  and  became  proficient  maiolists. 

Serior  Enrique  L.  Ventosa,  who  has  given  much  at- 
tention to  the  subject,  states,  as  a  result  of  his  historical 
investigations,  based  on  tradition  and  information  obtained 
from  some  of  the  older  potters  whose  ancestors  for  several 
generations  produced  tin  enameled  pottery  in  Puebla.  that 
towards  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  there  were 
ten  or  twelve  maiolica  manufacturers  in  that  city.  About  a 
hundred  years  later  (1750),  when  the  industry  had  reached 
its  height,  some  thirty  establishments  were  in  operation,  but 
from  about  1800  to  i860  the  number  had  decreased  to  about 
twelve.  At  the  present  time,  only  six  manufactories  of  tin 
enameled  earthenware  are  in  operation  in  Puebla,  where 
the  common  grade  of  utilitarian  wares,  and  tiles,  entirely 
devoid   of  artistic   merit,  are  manufactured.      The   proprie- 

^2 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  33 

tors  of  these  locerias  are  as  follows:  Dimas  Uriarte,  Luis 
Guevara,  Ignacio  Romero,  Hilario  Romero,  J.  M.  Sanchez 
and  Antonio  Espinosa.  At  the  latter's  establishment  Senor 
Ventosa  is  engaged  in  decorating  the  most  artistic  ware 
which  is  now  being  made  in  Mexico,  having  since  1900  been 
endeavoring  to  elevate  the  standard  of  an  art,  which,  after 
having  flourished  for  over  two  hundred  years,  has  fallen 
into  decay.  This  artist  has  recently  been  reviving  many  of 
the  designs  found  on  the  old  maiolica  and  tiles  of  Spain 
and  Mexico.  His  work  is  characterized  by  conscientious 
adherence  to  the  spirit  of  the  originals,  and  some  of  his 
large  plaques,  in  Hispano-Moresque  style,  are  especially 
praiseworthy.  Senor  Ventosa's  reproductions  are  sold  at 
moderate  prices,  and  are  so  characteristic  in  treatment  that 
they  can  be  distinguished  without  difficulty  from  the  older 
pieces  which  served  as  his  models  (see  illustration  59). 

Senor  Ventosa,  who  came  from  Barcelona,  Spain,  having 
pursued  his  art  education  in  Paris,  commenced  in  1900  to 
reproduce  the  antique  wares  of  Puebla.  So  successful  was 
he  in  this  work  that  all  of  the  other  tin  enamel  factories 
of  that  city  have  followed  his  lead  and  at  present  are  en- 
gaged in  imitating,  to  a  greater  or  lesser  extent,  the  older 
forms,  in  addition  to  the  legitimate  manufacture  of  com- 
mercial products.  Some  of  the  larger  pieces  occasionally 
find  their  way  into  the  hands  of  dealers  and  collectors 
where  they  pose  as  veritable  antiques,  readily  deceiving  all 
but  the  closest  student  of  the  ancient  wares.  A  pair  of 
enormous  vases,  in  Chinese  style,  mounted  with  dome- 
shaped  covers,  and  embellished  with  figure  paintings  illus- 
trating scenes  relating  to  the  Conquest  of  Mexico,  were 
recently  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  writer  as  examples 
of  seventeenth  century  work.  Investigation  proved  them  to 
have  been  produced  within  a  year  or  so,  at  one  of  the  es- 
tablishments which  are  still  in  existence  (see  illustration  60). 


VI.     Processes  of  Manufacture. 


The  present  day  potters  of  Puebla,  Mexico,  use  prac- 
tically the  same  processes  as  were  employed  by  the  Euro- 
pean maiolists  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries, 
since  there  has  been  little  change  in  methods  in  this  in- 
dustry fo{  hundreds  of  years. 

When  the  clay  has  been  well  mixed  by  the  feet  of  the 
workmen,  and  freed  from  grit,  it  is  fashioned  into  vessels, 
which  are  laid  aside  to  dry,  and  afterwards  placed  in  the 
first  kiln  and  subjected  to  heat  for  five  or  six  hours,  being 
taken  out  in  the  biscuit  state.  The  baked  ware  is  then 
dipped  in  a  liquid  preparation  of  glaze  or  enamel,  composed 
of  oxides  of  lead  and  tin,  ground  together  in  the  propor- 
tion of  about  three  parts  of  the  former  to  one  of  the  lat- 
ter, to  which  water,  sand  and  a  little  molasses  have  been 
added,  the  latter  to  make  it  adhesive.  After  the  glaze  has 
dried  on  the  surface  of  the  porous  clay,  the  decorations  are 
painted  in  colors  obtained  from  metallic  oxides  mixed  with 
flux.  When  perfectly  dry  the  ware  is  subjected  to  a  second 
firing,  which  lasts  about  thirty-six  hours.  By  this  process 
the  colors  are  incorporated  with  the  glaze,  presenting  the 
appearance  of  underglaze  painting. 

The  Mexican  maiolica  differs  from  the  Italian  in  that 
the  former  does  not  possess  a  superficial  coating  of  glaze, 
composed  of  oxide  of  lead,  potash  and  sand,  as  in  the  lat- 
ter, known  as  marzacotto,  the  lead  being  mixed  into  the 
enamel  before  it  is  applied,  by  the  Mexican  potters.  For 
this  reason  the  Mexican  ware  possesses  a  homogeneous 
enamel,  which  is  so  hard  that  it  can  only  with  difficulty  be 
scratched  with  a  steel  point. 

34 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  35 

A  careful  study  of  the  body  of  Puebla  maiolica  reveals 
the  fact  that  the  clays  employed  were  apparently  of  two 
kinds,  white  and  red.  These  two  varieties  will  be  found 
to  occur  in  the  earliest  pieces  as  well  as  those  of  recent  date. 
The  white  body  is  much  softer  than  the  red,  the  difference  in 
color  being  caused  by  the  degree  of  heat  to  which  the  ware 
was  subjected  at  the  first  firing,  or  the  length  of  time  it 
was  allowed  to  remain  in  the  kiln.  When  baked  slightly  the 
clay  appears  white  and  porous,  and  so  soft  that  it  can 
be  readily  cut  with  a  knife,  but  when  allowed  to  remain 
longer  in  the  kiln,  at  a  high  temperature,  it  becomes  par- 
tially vitrified  and  considerably  harder,  and  of  a  deep  pink 
or  reddish  hue,  increasing  in  density  with  the  darkening  of 
the  color.  Thus  the  tint  of  the  body  bears  no  relation  to 
the  antiquity  of  the  ware  nor  does  it  indicate  the  locality 
from  which  the  clay  was  obtained.*  It  is  true  that  two  va- 
rieties of  clay  are  used, — white  clay  obtained  at  San  Bartolo, 
San  Pedro  and  Santo  Tomas,  hills  near  the  village  of  Toto- 
mehuacan,  five  kilometers  from  Puebla,  and  red  clay  from 
Loreto  and  Guadalupe,  in  the  vicinity  of  that  city,  but 
these  are  always  combined  in  equal  parts,  to  produce  the 
results  desired.  It  is  stated  that  no  other  combination  of 
clays  is  employed  and  that  neither  the  red  nor  the  white 
clay  can  be  used  alone,  with  satisfactory  results. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  in  the  rules  of  the  potters'  guild 
of  the  seventeenth  century  it  is  stated  that  the  glaze  for 
fine  pottery  shall  consist  of  twenty-five  pounds  of  lead  to 
six  pounds  of  tin,  or  four  and  one-sixth  parts  of  the  former 


*  It  is  a  curious  fact,  however,  that  many  of  the  best  pieces  of 
the  earlier  ware  were  only  slightly  fired  and,  as  a  result,  possess  a 
light-colored  body,  which  in  some  instances  is  almost  as  soft  as  chalk, 
but  is  always  covered  with  a  hard  enamel.  The  larger  and  coarser 
pieces  were  usually  burned  more  thoroughly  and  are  consequently 
more  vitreous  and  of  a  darker  tint  beneath  the  glaze. 


36  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

to  one  of  the  latter,  a  somewhat  less  proportion  of  tin  than 
is  used  by  the  modern  potters.  In  consequence  of  the 
greater  care  exercised  in  the  preparation  of  materials,  how- 
ever, the  glaze  of  the  older  ware  is  more  even  and  homo- 
geneous than  that  of  the  present  day  wares. 

Each  piece  was  baked  in  its  own  fire-clay  case,  or  seg- 
gar,  and  the  use  of  clay  supports,  which  would  leave  scars 
on  the  pieces,  was  prohibited  by  the  laws  of  the  guild  for 
the  finer  wares. 

For  the  common  wares,  among  which  were  probably 
included  tiles,  the  glaze  consisted  of  a  less  proportion  of  tin 
(twelve  and  a  half  parts  of  lead  to  one  of  tin).  In  baking 
this  grade  of  ware  clay  supports  were  used  in  stacking  the 
pieces  in  the  kiln  instead  of  enclosing  them  in  seggars,  and 
the  scars  produced  by  this  practice  are  distinctly  visible  on 
many  of  the  tiles. 

Five  colors  were  employed  in  decorating  the  best 
pieces,  while  three  colors  were  used  in  the  ornamentation 
of  cheaper  ware.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  employ- 
ment of  so  many  colors  was  obligator}7,  but  merely  permis- 
sible. In  point  of  fact  we  fail  to  find,  among  the  earliest 
pieces  of  maiolica  which  have  descended  to  us,  any  which 
were  painted  in  polychrome.  If  five  colors  were  applied 
before  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  to  vases  and 
other  ornamental  objects,  such  pieces  have  apparently  dis- 
appeared, but  on  many  of  the  oldest  tiles,  found  in  the  walls 
of  ancient  churches,  convents  and  monasteries,  the  decora- 
tions are  frequently  in  blue,  green  and  yellow.  Tiles  which 
had  been  set  in  cement  where  they  would  remain  undis- 
turbed for  centuries,  would  naturally  outlast  the  more  per- 
ishable objects  for  household  use  and  decoration. 

It  was  provided  in  the  rules  for  making  pottery  that 
painted  ware  was  to  be  first  decorated  with  black,  "in  order 
that   its  beauty  may  shine   out."     We   do   not   understand 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


37 


from  this  statement  that  the  ground  was  to  be  covered  with 
black  nor  that  the  designs  should  be  painted  in  silhouette, 
but  that  the  patterns  should  be  outlined  with  black  or  dark 
brown  and  afterwards  filled  in  or  shaded  with  blue  or  some 
other  color.  Many  of  the  earlier  pieces  which  have  been 
preserved  were  actually  so  treated,  the  darker  outlines 
bringing  out  the  designs  with  greater  distinctness  on  the 
white  enamel  of  the  ground.  This  is  true  particularly 
of  many  articles  which  were  decorated  in  the  Chinese  stvle. 


146120 


VII.    The  Maiolica  of  Spain. 

There  were  three  great  centres  of  maiolica  manufacture 
in  Spain,  namely,  Malaga,  Valencia  and  Talavera.  The  so- 
called  Hispano-Moresque  pottery,  or  lustered  faience,  is 
now  ascribed  to  Malaga  and  Valencia,  having  probably  been 
made  at  a  little  earlier  date  at  the  first  mentioned  place. 
The  principal  features  of  the  Malaga  maiolica  are  golden 
and  pearly  lustres  combined  with  dark  blue  decorations  in 
conventionalized  animal  and  plant  forms.  The  celebrated 
Alhambra  vase,  believed  by  some  to  date  from  about  the 
middle  of  the  fourteenth  century,  is  attributed  by  the  best 
authorities  to  Malaga. 

During  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  Valencia 
was  one  of  the  most  important  seats  of  maiolica  manufacture 
in  Spain.  The  chief  characteristics  are  mock  Arabic  in- 
scriptions and  renderings  of  animal  and  plant  forms,  such 
as  vine  leaves,  briony  foilage,  animals  and  birds.  Much  of 
the  ware  is  of  a  heraldic  character.  Under  the  name  of 
Valencia  ware  was  that  produced  in  the  neighboring  towns 
of  Manises,  Gesarte,  Mislata  and  Paterna.  While  the 
lustered  wares  of  Malaga  and  Valencia  are  quite  similar  in 
many  respects,  they  can  be  distinguished  from  each  other 
in  a  general  way  by  the  character  of  the  decoration,  that 
of  the  former  being  distinguished  by  large,  bold  motifs, 
while  that  of  Valencia  more  frequently  consists  of  smaller 
and  more  closely  crowded  details  (see  illustration  i). 

The  tin  enameled  ware  of  Talavera  de  la  Reyna,  in  the 
Province  of  Toledo,  presents  well  marked  characteristics 
which  are  not  found  in  the  Hispano-Moresque  lustered  pot- 

38 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


39 


tery.  Brongniart  regards  Talavera  as  the  true  centre  of  the 
manufacture  of  pottery  in  Spain.  Albert  Jacque'mart,  in 
his  "Histoirc  de  la  Ccramique,"  states  that  this  locality  was 
so  renowned  for  its  faience  in  the  seventeenth  and  eight- 
eenth centuries  that  the  name  "Talavera"  came  to  be  com- 


1              WSZ&i  '"T^e^^^SbiI  wl 

3p9| 

vfc4  ^^sTm 

<*»►• 

i.    HISPANO— MORESQUE    MAIOLICA. 
PLAQUE  AND   DRUG  JAR,   OR   ALBARELLO. 

Blue  and   Gold   Lustre   Decoration. 

Sixteenth    Century. 

In  the   Boston   Museum  of  Fine  Arts. 


monly  applied  to  pottery  in  Spain,  just  as  the  word  "Delft" 
was  used  in  a  generic  sense  in  Holland  and  England  to  in- 
dicate all  pottery  possessing  a  stanniferous  enamel  made  in 
those  countries.  In  illustration  2  is  shown  a  Talavera  plate, 
decorated  in  dark  blue,  of  the  early  eighteenth  century. 

Seiior  Juan  F.  Riario,  in  the  South  Kensington  Hand- 
book on  Spanish  Arts,  states  that  "the  earliest  mention  we 


4o 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


find  of  Talavera  pottery  occurs  in  a  MS.  volume  dated  1560 
— a  history  of  this  town,  in  which  mention  is  made  of  'white, 
green,  blue  and  other  colored  Talavera  ware.'  ...  In  a 
MS.  history  of  Talavera  written  in  1651  (Bib.  Nac.  Mad- 
rid, G.   112),  the  author,  Father  de  Ajofrin,  says  that  'the 


2.    MAIOLICA  PLATE. 

Decorated    in    Blue. 

Talavera,    Spain,    Early    Eighteenth    Century. 

In   the   Museum    Collection. 


pottery  is  as  good  as  that  of  Pisa,  a  large  number  of 
azulejos  are  also  made  to  adorn  the  front  of  altars,  churches, 
gardens,  alcoves,  saloons,  and  bowers.'  ...  In  another 
MS.  history  of  Talavera  (Bibl.  Nac.  G.  187)  we  find  men- 
tion of  'perfect  imitations  of  oriental  china'  and  that  the 
pottery  made  there,  'was  used  all  over  Spain,  and  sent  to 
India,    France,    Flanders,    Italy    and    other    countries,    and 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  41 

was  esteemed  everywhere  for  the  perfection  of  the  colouring 
and  brilliancy  of  the  glaze.'  " 

The  same  writer,  quoting  from  Larruga's  "Memories 
Politicas  y  Economicas"  (vol.  X.,  Madrid,  1741),  informs 
us  that  "the  manufactory  of  fine  earthenware  of  Talavera 
de  la  Reyna  continued  to  make  such  pottery  of  importance 
until  1720;  eight  kilns  existed  then,  which  employed  more 
than  400  persons,  men,  women  and  children." 

The  industry  was  revived  later  on,  and  Udal  ap  Rhys, 
in  "An  Account  of  the  Most  Remarkable  Places  and  Curios- 
ities in  Spain  and  Portugal"  (London,  1749),  referring  to 
Talavera,  says,  "It  is  noted  also  for  a  very  curious  kind  of 
earthenware  that  is  made  in  imitation  of  China." 

In  another  MS.  history  of  Talavera  (Bib.  Nac.  F.  142), 
written  about  1568,  Fr.  Andres  de  Torrejon  tells  us  that 
"the  varnish  used  for  the  white  pottery  is  made,  with  tin 
and  sand." 

Very  little  seems  to  have  been  published  in  reference 
to  the  exact  nature  of  the  maiolica  wares  of  Talavera  de  la 
Reyna,  but  Jacquemart,  in  his  "History  of  the  Ceramic 
Art,"*  describes  several  pieces  of  the  ware. 

Quoting  from  Jacquemart,  "The  enamel  of  Talavera 
is  white  and  well  glazed;  from  this  manufactory  have  been 
sent  pieces  very  remarkable  in  form  and  decoration;  we  have 
seen  a  large  state  vase  with  twisted  handles,  and  opening 
decorated  with  a  twist  in  relief;  upon  the  ovoid  body  twisted 
mouldings  mark  the  boundaries  of  a  central  zone  painted 
with  detached  landscapes,  groups  of  rococo  ornaments  and 
bouquets  of  flowers;  towards  the  top,  heads  in  relief,  fas- 
tened by  draperies,  support  little  vases;  at  the  base,  above 
the  stem,  gadroons  in  S  recall  the  disposition  of  certain 
Italian  pieces  of  the  decadence.  All  this  ornamented  in 
soft,  well  glazed  tints,  has  a  very  uncommon  appearance. 

*  Histoire  de  la  Ceramiquc.     Paris,  1873. 


42  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

"A  vase  equal  in  merit  forms  part  of  the  interesting  col- 
lection of  the  Comte  de  Liesville;  we  will  not  describe  it, 
the  engraving  giving  the  most  exact  idea  of  its  style  and 
perfection.  These  last  pieces  would  appear  to  have  been 
made  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Specimens  of  a  later 
date  recommend  themselves  still  by  their  pure  enamel, 
recherche  form,  and  a  floral  decoration  whose  soft  harmony 
resembles  the  polychrome  works  of  Moustiers,  with  bou- 
quets and  wreaths.  Would  it  be  also  there  that  was  made 
the  bell  of  the  convent  in  the  collection  of  Arosa  where  the 
legend  'Saint  Francis  pray  for  us,  1769,'  surmounts  the  view 
of  a  village  with  its  churches  and  towers?  Ancient  writers 
speak  of  a  green  and  white  pottery,  special  to  this  estab- 
lishment; we  have  seen  a  fine  plate,  almost  of  Moresque 
style,  where  these  colors  laid  on  an  engobe  formed  a  rich 
composition,  relieved  with  graffiti  and  outlines  of  man- 
ganese." 

In  the  eighteenth  century  poor  imitations  of  Italian 
maiolica  were  made  extensively  at  Talavera,  the  principal 
colors  employed  in  the  decoration  being  green,  orange, 
manganese,  black  and  blue.  In  the  collection  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Museum  may  be  seen  several  examples  of  this 
later  period.  Illustration  3  represents  a  low  tazza,  or  dish, 
the  gift  of  Mrs.  John  Harrison.  The  central  painting  shows 
a  gentleman  on  horseback,  surrounded  by  foliage,  while  the 
border  pattern  is  a  foliated  scroll  design,  the  colors  being 
yellow,  pale  green,  and  light  brown. 

A  characteristic  form  of  the  debased  style  of  Talavera 
ware  of  the  middle  or  late  eighteenth  century  is  the  deep, 
semi-globular  bowl,  usually  embellished  in  the  cavity  with 
a  painting  of  an  animal  or  a  heraldic  device,  and  on  the 
outside  with  a  rude  landscape  or  conventional  design,  the 
predominating  colors  being  green,  yellow  and  manganese  or 
purple.     Two  examples  of  this  character  are  owned  by  Mrs. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


43 


Robert  W.  de  Forest,  of  New  York.  One  is  ornamented 
with  a  rudely  painted  shield  inscribed  "Biba  Jesus,"  the 
other  with  the  figure  of  a  dog  (illustration  4).  In  the  col- 
lection of. this  Museum  a  similar  bowl,  the  gift  of  Mr.  John 


3.    MAIOLICA  TAZZA   (10^   Inches). 

Yellow,    Light   Green   and   Pale   Brown. 

Talavera,    Spain,    Eighteenth   Century. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


T.   Morris,   contains  the  painted   representation   of  a  wolf 
or  lion  (illustration  5). 

From  the  foregoing  quotations  we  learn  that  the  pot- 
ters of  Talavera  were  imitating  the  wares  of  China  in  the 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  and  that  as  early  as 
the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  pottery  in  several  colors 
was  being  produced  in  that  place.  A  hundred  years  later 
azulejos,  or  tiles,  for  the  adornment  of  buildings,  gardens 


44 


MMOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


and  altars,  were  manufactured  to  a  considerable  extent,  the 
term  azulejo  (meaning  blue)  having-  been  applied  to  the 
first  Delft  tiles  imported  from  Holland.  The  earliest  tin 
glazed  tiles  of  Spain,  which  superseded  the  Hispano-Mo- 
resque  lustered  wares,  were  painted  in  blue  and  the  name 


MAIOLICA    DISH    (14M    Inches   in    Height). 

Blue    Camaieu    Decoration. 

Genoa,    Italy,    Eighteenth   Century. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 

(Compare   with    Illustration  20.) 


has  survived  until  the  present  time,  and  is  now  applied,  to 
tiles' of  all  colors. 

In  the  eighteenth  century  potters  went  to  Spain  from 
Italy  and  introduced  the  Italian  styles  of  modeling  and 
painting.  It  is  probable  that  some  of  these  artisans  came 
from  Genoa,  as  we  can  trace  a  marked  resemblance  in  some 
of  the  Talavera  wares  to  those  of  the  Italian  city.  We  here 
show,  for  purposes  of  comparison  (illustration  6),  a  fine 
dish   in   the    Museum   collection,   with   irregular,   scalloped 


4.     MAIOLTCA   DEEP  BOWL. 
Decorated  in   Colors   (14  Inches). 
Talavera,    Spain,    Eighteenth    Century. 
Collection    of   Mrs.    Robert    W.    de    Forest,    New    York,    N. 


Y. 


5.     MAIOLICA  DEEP   BOWL. 

Decorated  in   Colors    (14   Inches). 

Talavera,    Spain,    Eighteenth    Century. 

In   the    Museum    Collection. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


45 


edge,  bearing  the  Genoa  mark,  decorated  with  a  figure  scene 
representing  a  lady  in  a  chariot,  drawn  by  swans  and  ac- 
companied by  flying  cupids,  or  amorini,  painted  in  blue 
camaieu. 

As  we  shall  see  later  on,  the  maiolica  and  tiles  of  Mexico 
were  subjected  to  some  of  the  same  influences  which  left 
their  impress  upon  the  wares  of  Talavera,  and  were  devel- 
oped on  almost  parallel  lines. 


VIII.    The  Maiolica  of  Mexico. 

The  maiolica  of  Mexico,  which  reflects  the  art  of  Spain, 
possesses  an  element  of  manly  vigor  in  the  boldness  of  its 
modeling  and  decorative  treatment,  which  gives  it  an  indi- 
viduality of  its  own.  Crude  and  inartistic  though  it  fre- 
quently was  at  the  beginning,  the  refining  influence  of  the 
Chinese  potters  made  itself  felt  at  a  little  later  date  and  im- 
parted an  elegance  to  some  of  the  Puebla  fabrications  which 
was  entirely  lacking  in  the  Talavera  wares  of  the  same 
period. 

The  study  of  Mexican  maiolica  reveals  the  fact  that 
the  wares  which  properly  fall  under  this  head  are  of  four 
different  styles,  which  belong  to  distinct,  but  sometimes 
overlapping,  periods  of  time,  as  follows: 

ist.     The  Moresque  (from  about  1575  to  1700). 
2d.      The  Spanish,  or  Talavera  (from  about  1600  to  1780). 
3d.      The  Chinese  (from  about  1650  to  1800). 
4th.     The  Hispano-AIexican,  or  Pueblan    (from  about  1800  to 
i860). 

I.       THE    MORESQUE    STYLE. 

The  earliest  of  these  styles,  of  which  examples  are  very 
scarce,  shows  unmistakably  the  Moorish,  or  Hispano- 
Moresque,  influence  and  dates  from  about  the  latter  part 
of  the  sixteenth  to  about  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. The  so-called  Moresque  style  of  decoration  is  charac- 
terized by  interlacing  scrollwork  and  strapwork.  As  early 
as  the  fourteenth  century  the  Spanish  Moors  were  produc- 
ing a  peculiar  style  of  wall  tiling  in  which  the  parallel  out- 

46 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  47 

lines  of  the  designs  are  in  slight  relief,  forming  boundaries 
for  the  enamel  colors  applied  in  the  grooves  between.  The 
best  examples  of  this  variety  of  tile-work  are  found  in  the 
Alhambra  and  throughout  southern  Spain.  This  style  of 
mural  decoration  was  introduced  into  Mexico  probably  be- 
fore the  year  1600,  and  traces  of  it  are  yet  to  be  met  with 
in  some  of  the  ecclesiastical  edifices  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, notably  in  the  dado  of  the  Chapel  of  the  Rosary 
(Capilla  de  Nucstra  Seilora  del  Rosario)  in  the  church  of  Santo 
Domingo,  Puebla,  in  which  are  also  sections  of  strapwork 
showing  intricate  blue  and  white  designs  spread  over  con- 
siderable surfaces,  repeated  at  intervals  (see  illustration  49). 
The  employment  of  the  Moorish  styles  of  ornamentation 
in  Mexico  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  previous  to 
1720  pottery  and  tiles  were  exported  to  New  Spain  from 
various  Spanish  ports,  as  we  learn  from  a  work  published 
in  Cadiz,*  in  which,  referring  to  duties  and  freight  on  goods 
sent  to  America,,  it  is  stated  that  azulejos  (tiles),  5!  inches 
square,  shall  pay,  per  1000,  27.12  reales;  Geneva  tiles,  11 
inches  square,  for  paving  courts  and  rooms  (evidently  un- 
glazed  bricks),  free;  pottery  (maiolica)  from  the  factory  of 
Alcora,  free  of  duties  for  ten  years;  pottery  from  Seville, 
free.  That  these  wares  were  brought  into  Mexico  in  con- 
siderable abundance  for  some  time  previous  to  1720,  is 
doubtless  true,  and  it  is  equally  certain  that  some  of  them, 
at  least,  were  in  the  Hispano-Moresque  style,  which  would 
have  a  marked  effect  on  the  Mexican  productions.  The 
lavabo,  or  bowl,  of  this  character,  shown  in  illustration  7, 
from  the  lavatory  of  the  old  Mexican  convent  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, at  Atlixco,  which  dates  back  to  the  early  part  of  the 


*  Compendio  General  de  las  contribuciones  y  gastos  que  ocasionan 
todos  los  Efectos  Frutos,  Caudales  y  demas,  que  se  trafican  entre  los 
Reynos  de  Castilla  y  America.  Deducidas  del  Real  Proyecto  de  5  de 
Abril  de  el  Ano  pasado  de  1720,  etc.,  etc.   Cadiz,  1762. 


4« 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


seventeenth  century,  is  covered  with  a  handsome  scrollwork 
design  in  blue,  outlined  with  black.  The  central  pattern  is 
purely  Moorish  in  spirit,  both  in  composition  and  coloring, 


7.      MAIOLICA    LAVABO    (20   Inches). 

Decorated    in    Blue,    Outlined   in   Black. 

Showing   Moorish   Influence. 

Puebla,    About    1650.      From   an    old    Convent. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


variations  of  this  treatment  being  still  employed  by  the 
modern  Moorish  potters.  The  question  has  been  raised 
whether  this  piece  was  made  in  Mexico  or  was  brought  from 
Spain.     A  careful  examination  of  the  workmanship  clearly 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  49 

shows  that  it  differs  from  native  Moorish  work  in  the  treat- 
ment of  the  colors,  the  blue  being  thick  and  standing  out 
in  perceptible  relief,  which  was  a  marked  characteristic  of 
the  Mexican  ware  of  that  and  the  following  century. 

II.   THE  SPANISH,  OR  TALAVERA  STYLE. 

It  is  a  popular  belief  throughout  Mexico  that  potters 
were  brought  from  Talavera,  Spain,  by  the  Dominican  Fri- 
ars, who  reached  New  Spain  in  1526.  Just  when  the  first  im- 
portation of  maiolists  into  Mexico  occurred  is  somewhat 
uncertain,  but,  as  we  shall  presently  see,  it  could  not  have 
been  much  later  than  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
They  established  potteries  in  Puebla  and  initiated  the  na- 
tives into  the  mysteries  of  the  manufacture,  preparing  the 
way  for  the  building  up  of  a  great  industry  which  was  des- 
tined to  supply  the  remarkable  tile-work  which  was  used 
so  extensively  in  the  following  centuries  in  the  interiors  and 
exteriors  of  churches,  convents,  monasteries,  hospitals  and 
private  dwellings. 

According  to  Consul-General  A.  M.  Gottschalk,*  of 
Mexico  City,  the  first  potters  and  tile-makers  brought  from 
Spain  were  artisan  members  of  a  religious  order.  "The  his- 
tory of  the  Puebla  'Talavera'  ware,"  he  writes,  "appears  to 
be  as  follows:  In  the  early  days  of  Puebla's  history  the  Do- 
minican friars,  struck  by  the  aptitude  of  their  Aztec  parish- 
ioners at  making  crude  native  pottery,  and  desirous  also  of 
obtaining  tiles  for  the  monastery  and  church  which  they 
were  building,  sent  word  to  the  Dominican  establishment 
at  Talavera  de  la  Reina,  in  the  Province  of  Toledo,  Spain, 
that  they  could  make  good  use  of  five  or  six  of  the  brother- 
hood who  were  acquainted  with  the  Spanish  process  of  pot- 


*  Daily   Consular  and   Trade  Reports,   Washington,    D.   C,    No. 
2975,  P-   15- 


5o  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

terv  making-,  if  such  could  be  sent  out  to  them.  Accord- 
ingly a  number  of  Dominican  friars,  familiar  with  the  clay- 
working  processes  in  use  at  Talavera,  were  assigned  to  the 
Puebla  house  of  their  order,  and  under  them  were  trained 
a  generation  of  workmen,  who  for  the  first  few  succeeding 
years  produced  some  excellent  pieces.  In  course  of  time 
the  industry  was  gradually  discontinued,  and  with  the  con- 
fiscation of  church  property  and  the  withdrawal  of  the  re- 
ligious orders  from  Mexico  little  more  than  the  tradition 
remained." 

While  with  considerable  confidence  we  assign  to  the 
earlier  period  of  maiolica  manufacture  in  Mexico  those  pieces 
which  reflect  the  Mauresque  feeling  in  decorative  treatment, 
we  find  that  at  a  little  later  date,  if  not  contemporaneously, 
was  produced  a  Hispanized  style  of  pottery  in  Mexico,  in 
which  the  Italian  influence  can  be  traced,  but  which  we  now 
know  as  the  Talavera  style.  As  Talavera  is  in  the  interior 
of  Spain,  its  pottery  shows  less  of  Moorish  influence  than 
that  of  Malaga  or  Valencia  on  the  Mediterranean  coast. 
Consequently  the  Talavera  pottery  presents  certain  resem- 
blances to  some  of  the  Italian  maiolica,  particularly  that  of 
Savona  and  Genoa.  It  is  known  that  potters  and  decora- 
tors went  to  Talavera  from  Italy  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
and  it  is  therefore  not  surprising  that  the  Italian  influence 
should  be  strongly  marked  in  the  Talavera  wares  of  that 
period.  The  characteristics  of  the  earlier  Talavera  maiolica 
are  an  absence  of  metallic  lustres,  which  were  so  prominent 
a  feature  in  the  products  of  Malaga  and  Valencia,  and  the 
prevalence  of  blue  color  in  the  white  enamel  of  the  ground. 
Animal,  bird  and  human  forms  were  introduced,  in  combi- 
nation with  foliated  and  floriated  ornaments,  frequently 
crowded  together  without  regard  to  position  or  fitness.  In 
illustration  2  we  have  shown  a  plate  or  shallow  dish  of  this 
character,  belonging  to  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


5i 


tury,  which  was  recently  obtained  in  Spain  for  this  Museum. 
The  decorations,  in  dark  blue,  are  strongly  suggestive  of 
some  of  the  Puebla  work  of  the  same  period  and  reveal  one 
of  the  sources  from  which  the  Mexican  potters  derived  their 
inspiration. 


8.     MAIOLICA    BOWL    (15    Inches). 

Blue   Decoration.      Showing    Spanish    Influence. 

Puebla,   About   1685. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


The  earliest  examples  of  Talavera  style  made  in  Mexico 
are  probably  those  in  which  the  ornamentation  is  tattooed, 
or  rudely  painted  in  dots  and  dashes  in  dark  blue.  This  class 
of  work  is  found  on  tiles,  bowls,  albarelli,  or  so-called  apothe- 
cary jars,  barrel-shaped  vases,  or  jardinieres,  spherical  jars 


52 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


(imitating-  the  ginger  jars  of  China),  and  occasionally  on 
other  objects.  Of  bowls  there  were  many  varieties  and  sizes, 
but  one  of  the  best  which  has  thus  far  come  to  light  is  the 
large,  shallow  specimen  shown  in  illustration  8,  in  which  the 
birds  and  hare  are  distinctly  Talaveran,  while  the  Moorish 
influence  crops  out  in  the  three  mosque-shaped  buildings. 


9.     MAIOLICA   BOWL   (ioJ-S   Inches   Diam.). 

Blue    Decoration. 

Showing    Spanish   Influence. 

Puebla,    About    1680. 
In  the   Museum    Collection. 


This  interesting  piece  is  supposed  to  have  been  produced 
previous  to  the  year  1700,  at  the  time  when  both  the 
Moresque  and  Talavera  influences  were  at  work  in  Puebla. 
Most  characteristic  of  the  tattooed  style  is  the  bowl  shown 
in  illustration  9.  In  illustration  10  we  see  an  urn-shaped 
flower  vase,  or  jardiniere,  of  this  style,  bearing  on  the  side 
the  word  BERNAL,  the  name  of  the  family  for  which  it 
was   originally   made.      This   example-  is   owned   by    Seiior 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


53 


Rafael  Cervantes,  of  Mexico.  A  fine  example  is  shown  in 
illustration  II.  It  is  a  bowl,  upwards  of  twenty  inches  in 
diameter  and  six  and  a  half  inches  in  depth,  owned  by  Mr. 
Albert  Pepper.  In  place  of  connected  lines  to  represent 
flowers  and  foliage,  the  artist  has  used  successions  and 
groupings  of  small  dots,  made  with  the  point  of  the  brush, 


io.    MAIOLICA    URN-SHAPED    JARDINIERE. 

Decorated    in    Blue. 

Showing    Spanish   Influence. 

Puebla,   About   1680. 

Collection  of  Sefior  Rafael   Cervantes. 


with  rows  of  coarse  lines,  to  represent  the  costume  of  the 
figure.  To  give  detail  to  certain  parts,  as  the  face  and  hands 
of  the  figure,  these  important  features  have  been  outlined  in 
pale  blue.  This  may  be  termed  the  impressionistic  style 
of  maiolica  painting,  which  requires  distance  to  bring  out 
the  significance  and  harmony  of  the  design.  At  close  rarige 
we  see  what  appear  to  be  detached  rattles  of  serpents,  a 
confused  assemblage (  of  meaningless   dots,  filling  in  all  of 


54 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


the  white  spaces,  interspersed  with  dashes  and  blotches  of 
blue  color.  Careful  study,  however,  reveals  an  ingenious 
arrangement  of  the  motives,  in  which  foliage  and  flowers 


ii.     MAIOLICA   BASIN   (2oY4    Inches). 

Decorated    in    Blue. 

Showing   Spanish    Influence. 

Puebla,   About    1680. 

Collection  of  Mr.   Albert   Pepper. 


are  plainly  distinguishable,  with  here  and  there  a  long-tailed 
bird  in  flight,  a  wriggling  fish  or  other  creature  of  the  air, 
or  land,  or  water.     The  border  design  of  the  bowl,  on  close 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


55 


inspection,  will  be  found  to  consist  of  a  series  of  well-defined 
panel  devices,  separated  by  leaf-like  ornaments.  A  vase 
of  Chinese  form,  twenty  inches  in  height,  decorated  in  the 


12.    MAIOLICA  VASE. 

Blue  Decoration. 

Showing  Spanish   Influence. 

Puebla,   About   1680. 


Talavera  manner,  is  completely  covered  around  the  upper 
portion  with  crowded  paintings  of  foliage  and  flowers, 
houses,  a  sail  boat  or  pinnace,  and  figures  of  men,  squirrels, 
birds,  and  deer  (see  illustration  12). 


56 


MA  I OLIC A  OF  MEXICO 


One  of  the  most  characteristic  styles  of  decoration, 
found  frequently  on  albarelli  and  spherical  jars,  is  that  -in 
which  birds,  flowers  and  conventional  devices  are  boldly  but 
rudely  painted  in  silhouette,  or  solid,  raised  dark  blue,  almost 
entirely  covering  the  white  surface  (see  illustration  13). 

Examples  of  Mexican  maiolica  of  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth  centuries,  in  the  Talavera  style,  are   compara- 


13.     MAIOLICA  JARS   (10  and  o  Inches  in   Height). 

Blue    Decoration. 

Showing   Spanish    Influence. 

Puebla,    1700-1750. 


lively  abundant,  and  will  be  found  in  every  collection  of  this 
ware.  The  albarelli,  which  in  Italy  were  almost  exclusively 
devoted  to  the  uses  of  the  apothecary,  were  later,  in  Mexico, 
employed  largely  as  receptacles  for  flowers,  and  rarely,  if 
ever,  bear  the  names  of  drugs,  although  some  of  them  pos- 
sess a  plain  white  band  which  extends  diagonally  across  one 
side,  evidently  intended  to  furnish  a  reserved  space  for  a 
label.  Several  examples  of  these  cylindrical  jars,  in  the 
Museum  collection,  strongly  reveal  the  Spanish  feeling,  both 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  57 

in  form  and  decorative  treatment.  In  illustration  15  five 
of  these,  dating  back  to  about  1700- 1750,  are  shown.  These 
jars  were  generally  made  with  projecting  flanges  at  the 
base,  after  an  old  Spanish  form,  which  were  intended  to  fit 


14.      MAIOLICA    JAR    (10^    Inches). 

Blue    Decoration. 

With  Iron  Cover,  Lock  and  Key. 

Showing  Spanish  Influence  in  Decoration, 

And  Chinese   Influence  in   Form  and  Metal  Work. 

Puebla,  About  1700. 

In   the   Museum    Collection. 


into  holes  or  sockets  in  a  wooden  shelf,  to  hold  the  vessels 
in  place,  but  this  practice  does  not  seem  to  have  been  fol- 
lowed in  Mexico.  Consequently  we  find  examples  of  this 
form  with  smooth,  flat  bottoms,  in  addition  to  those  with  the 
projecting  foot,  or  basal  ring. 


58 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


Inkstands  and  sand-shakers  appear  to  have  been  pro- 
duced in  large  numbers,  about  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 


16.    MAIOLICA  INKSTANDS. 

Decorated  in  Blue. 

Showing  Spanish   Influence. 

Puebla,  About  1750. 
In  the   Museum   Collection. 


17.    MAIOLICA  INKSTANDS. 

a.  Decorated  in   Colors,   About   1800. 

b.  Decorated  in   Blue,   About   1750. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


century,  since  many  examples  are  to  be  found  in  collections 
(see  illustration  16).*    The  usual  form  of  the  older  examples 


*  Blue  and  white  ink  wells  of  this  type  have  been  found  in  the 
islands  to  the  eastward,  several  hundred  miles  from  Puebla,  evidences 
of  the  traffic  which  was  carried  on  between  Mexico  and  the  West 
Indies  in  the  eighteenth  century. 


iS.     MAIOLICA    DRUG   JARS    (ALBARELLI),    OR    FLOWER    VASES. 

Decorated    in    Blue. 

Showing   Spanish    Influence. 

Puebla,    1700-1750. 

The   Upper  Pair  are  in   the   Museum   Collection. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  59 

is  hexagonal,  the  ornamentation  consisting  of  dots  and 
small  details  rudely  applied  to  the  sides.  Occasionally  a 
more  elaborate  form  was  attempted,  such  as  the  large  speci- 
men shown  in  illustration  17. 

The  widespread  belief  which  today  prevails  throughout 
Mexico  that  Talavera  in  Spain  was  the  source  from  which 
the  art  was  derived  has  resulted  in  the  general  adoption  of 
the  term  "Talavera"  for  all  tin  enameled  pottery  which  has 
been  produced,  or  found,  in  the  land  of  the  Aztecs.  This 
broad  use  of  the  name,  however,  while  in  a  manner  correct, 
is  misleading,  since,  as  we  have  already  stated,  there  are 
several  distinct  styles  of  this  stanniferous  faience  which 
reached  their  final  development  through  entirely  different 
channels. 

III.      THE  CHINESE  STYLE. 

A  large  proportion  of  Puebla  maiolica  made  during  the 
latter  half  of  the  seventeenth,  and  throughout  the  greater 
part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  reflects,  in  form  and  decora- 
tions, the  methods  of  the  Chinese  potters.  We  have  already 
referred  to  the  claim  of  certain  Mexican  antiquaries  that 
Chinese  or  Japanese  workmen  were  brought  to  Mexico,  pre- 
sumably from  the  Philippine  Islands,  for  the  purpose  of 
manufacturing  this  ware.  This  theory  is  unsupported  by 
fact,  as  it  is  very  evident  to  the  expert  that  the  pseudo- 
Chinese  decorations  of  the  Mexican  wares  were  not  ex- 
ecuted by  Oriental  artists.  On  the  contrary,  they  plainly 
show  the  bungling  efforts  of  Spanish  or  Mexican  decorators 
to  imitate  Chinese  work.  No  piece  has  yet  been  discovered 
which  reveals  the  unmistakable  hand  of  an  Oriental  deco- 
rator. 

Commercial  relations  between  the  Philippines  and  New 
Spain  were  established  fully  as  early  as  1600,  when  trading 
galleons  began  to  sail  between  Luzon  and  Mexico.     From 


60  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

"The  Earliest  Historical  Relations  Between  Mexico  and  Japan," 
by  Mrs.  Zelia  Nuttall,  published  by  the  University  Press  of 
Berkeley,  California  (1906),  we  quote  the  following  pas- 
sages: 

"More  or  less  frequent  indirect  intercourse  between  Ja- 
pan and  Mexico  undoubtedly  took  place  as  soon  as  com- 
munication was  established  between  the  Philippine  Islands 
and  Acapulco  (Mexico). 

"In  1608  there  were  fifteen  thousand  Japanese  residing 
in  the  Philippines,  some  of  whom  were  probably  employed 
in  the  crews  of  the  galleons,  eight  of  which  came  to  Acapulco 
each  year.  In  1610,  with  the  ex-governor  of  the  Philippines, 
Vivero,  twenty-three  Japanese  noblemen  and  merchants 
spent  five  months  in  Mexico  and  its  capital. 

"In  161 3,  one  hundred  and  eighty  Japanese  spent  four 
and  a  half  months  in  Mexico.  The  majority  remained  when 
the  embassy  departed  for  Europe,  seventy-eight  returning 
to  Acapulco.  The  presumption  is  that  they  remained  there 
awaiting  the  return  of  the  ambassadors,  which  was  delayed 
for  six  years. 

"Iyemitsu's  prohibition  to  Japanese  to  leave  their  coun- 
try, under  penalty  of  death,  indicates  that  a  large  number 
of  persecuted  Christians  had  been  going  into  voluntary  ex- 
ile. In  all  probability  some  of  these,  and  also  members  of 
the  Japanese  colony  in  the  Philippines,  came  to  Mexico  and 
settled  there. 


"It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that  it  is  the  first  duty  of 
ethnologists  to  assign  to  the  above  influx  of  Japanese  into 
Mexico  in  historical  times  any  indications  of  Asiatic  influ- 
ence that  they  may  detect,  and  for  anthropologists  to  con- 
sider the  more  or  less  limited  mingling  of  races  which  doubt- 
less occurred  in  the  seventeenth  century  and  afterwards. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  61 

"I  will  set  an  example  by  attributing  to  the  Japanese 
who  visited  Mexico  in  the  seventeenth  century  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  rain-coat  made  of  grass  or  palm  leaves,  which  is 
worn  by  the  Indians  inhabiting  the  Pacific  coast  of  Mexico, 
and  which  is  said  to  be  identical  with  that  used  in  Japan 
from  time  immemorial 

"The  practical  lesson  thus  taught  the  observant  natives 
and  the  models  furnished  by  the  rain-coats  discarded  at  the 
end  of  the  wet  season  would  surely  sufficiently  account  for 
the  introduction  and  use  to  the  present  day  of  these  useful 
and  easily  manufactured  garments,  of  which  a  specimen, 
bought  in  the  market-place  at  Oaxaca,  has  been  sent  by  the 
writer  to  the  Museum  of  the  Department  of  Anthropology 
of  the  University  of  California." 

From  the  above  quotations  we  learn  that  the  Japanese 
began  to  impress  their  influence  upon  some  of  the  manufac- 
turers of  Mexico  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
although  the  art  of  pottery  making  does  not  appear  to  have 
received  any  impulse  from  that  source.  It  was  through 
China,  which,  at  a  little  later  period,  commenced  to  ship 
her  wares,  through  the  same  port  of  Acapulco,  into  Mexico, 
that  the  Asiatic  influence  began  to  affect  the  ceramic  in- 
dustry of  New  Spain,  not  directly  through  her  own  skilled 
artisans,  but  indirectly  through  the  extensive  influx  of  her 
finest  porcelains.  This  inference  is  unavoidable  when  a  care- 
ful study  of  the  maiolica  of  Mexico  reveals  no  trace  of  Japa- 
nese suggestion. 

The  importation  of  this  ware  into  Mexico  in  such  large 
quantities  naturally  stimulated  the  artistic  zeal  of  the  native 
potters,  who  soon  commenced  to  imitate  the  Eastern  forms 
and  decorations  in  their  own  productions.  The  spherical 
jar-shaped  vase  with  bell-shaped  cover  was  extensively 
copied,  and  it  will  be  found  that  the  greater  number  of  such 
pieces  are  ornamented  with  characteristic  motives  and  en- 


62  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

tire  designs  derived  from  the  Chinese  (see  illustration  21). 
These  jars  are  made  in  many  sizes,  some  of  which  are  ex- 
ceedingly capacious.  In  the  lapse  of  time  most  of  the  dome- 
shaped  lids,  belonging  to  the  Mexican  maiolica,  have  been 
broken  or  lost,  so  that  it  is  only  occasionally  that  an  ancient 
jar  is  found  with  cover  intact.  Among  the  Oriental  porce- 
lain vases  of  this  form  found  in  Mexico  many  were  provided 
with  hinged  iron  lids  having  a  lock  and  key  for  the  safe 
keeping  of  ginger  and  other  confections.  Some  of  the 
Puebla  jars  were  mounted  with  metal  covers  in  the  same 
manner,  in  which  chocolate  and  vanilla  could  be  safely 
locked.  In  illustration  14  we  show  a  jar  of  this  character, 
which,  while  Chinese  in  shape,  is  decorated  in  Spanish  style. 
The  iron  collar  and  lid  are  purely  Oriental.  The  head  of 
the  key  is  wrought  in  an  openwork  design  representing  an 
animal. 

There  are  four  distinct  varieties  of  decorative  work  in 
the  Chinese  style,  which  probably  emanated  from  as  many 
different  factories,  and  these  are  almost  invariably  painted 
in  blue  monochrome,  or  camaieu,  as  follows: 

1  st.     The  variety  with  blue  ground  and  designs  reserved  in  white. 

2d.      Chinese  figure  decorations. 

3d.      European  figure  decorations,  usually  combined  with  Oriental 

motives. 
4th.     The   white  medallion   variety  with   conventionalized   floral 

decorations. 

The  first  variety  is  exemplified  in  those  tiles  on  which 
the  details  have  been  outlined  in  pale  blue,  the  background 
having  afterwards  been  rudely  filled  in  with  thick  blue  pig- 
ment, leaving  the  patterns  reserved  in  white  (see  lower 
pair  in  illustration  40).  Many  examples  of  these  tiles  may 
be  seen  in  the  Museum  collection.  One  shows  a  convention- 
alized bird  (illustration  39);  another  the  figure  of  a  China- 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  63 

man  carrying  a  fan,  both  taken  from  a  house  dated  1687, 
while  two  specimens, — a  square  tile  and  an  angle  tile, — are 
decorated  with  winged  cherubs  (illustration  39).  A  vase 
owned  by  Mr.  Albert  Pepper  (illustration  18)  is  a  good  ex- 


18.     MAIOLICA   VASE    (14   Inches   in    Height). 
White  Decoration  Reserved  in  Blue  Ground. 

Showing  Chinese  Influence. 

Puebla,    1650-1700. 

Collection  of  Mr.  Albert  Pepper. 


ample  of  this  class,  although  it  also  possesses  the  character- 
istics of  the  fourth  variety. 

The  second  style  is  characterized  by  blue  figure  paint- 
ings in  Chinese  manner,  on  a  white  ground.  In  illustration 
19  is  shown  an  interesting  example  which  combines  the  first 


64 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


and  second  styles.    The  decoration  is  divided  into  eight  ver- 
tical panels  with  these  two  styles  alternating. 

One  of  the  finest  pieces  in  the  collection  of  this  Museum 
is  a  large  jar-shaped  vase  of  Chinese  form,  painted  in  blue 
camaieu   (see   illustration  20),   which   is   remarkable   as  re- 


19.     MAIOLICA  VASE  (15  Inches  in  Height). 

Decorated   in   Blue. 

Showing   Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,    1650-1700. 


fleeting  in  its  decoration  the  art  of  Italy,  through  Spain,  in 
combination  with  Oriental  figure  motives.  It  was  purchased 
with  money  contributed  by  Mrs.  John  Harrison.  We  recog- 
nize in  the  excellence  of  the  drawing,  particularly  of  the 
chariot,  a  suggescion  of  the  Italian  style,  as  in  a  blue  and 
white  dish  in  the  Museum  collection,  which  bears  the  mark 


20.    MAIOLICA  VASE. 

Decorated  in   Blue   Camaieu   (18^   Inches  in   Height). 

The    Chariot   and    Horses    Reflect   the    Italian   Taste. 

The   Driver   Shows    Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,   About   1660. 

Presented   by   Mrs.   John  Harrison. 


I. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


65 


of  Genoa  (see  illustration  6).  Another  jar-shaped  vase  in  the 
collection  is  encircled  by  irregular  medallions  with  pseudo- 
Chinese  designs  (see  illustration  21).  Were  it  not  for  the  Ori- 
ental figures  occupying  the  white  medallions  we  would  class 


'.  :\  ■ 


MAIOLICA   VASE    (13   Inches   in    Height). 
Blue    Decoration. 
Showing  Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,   About   1700. 
In  the   Museum   Collection. 


this  vase  with  the  fourth  variety.  Frequently  two  or  more 
of  the  Oriental  styles  are  found  in  combination,  which  would 
seem  to  indicate  that  certain  factories,  which  did  not  origi- 
nate a  distinctive  style,  appropriated  some  of  the  prominent 
peculiarities  of  other  wares  and  united  them  in  their  own. 


66 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


This  is  the  case  with  an  enormous  tub,  or  cistern,  which  com- 
bines the  first,  second  and  third  styles,  and  is  the  largest  piece 
of  this  ware  at  present  known  (see  illustration  22).     Oval  in 


MAIOLICA    BATH   TUB,   OR   CISTERN. 

(24  Inches  High,  40  Inches  Long.) 

Decorated   in    Blue  and    Brown. 

Showing   Chinese   and    Spanish    Influences. 

Puebla,    About    1650-1680. 


form,  it  stands  twenty-four  inches  in  height,  measures  forty 
inches  in  length,  and  is  elaborately  ornamented  in  blue  and 
white  over  its  entire  outside  surface,  around  the  upper  por- 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


67 


tion  of  the  interior  and  in  the  bottom.  The  figure  designs, 
enclosed  in  irregular  medallions,  represent  Chinamen 
mounted  on  horses,  apparently  beating  drums,  and  Spaniards 


24.      MAIOLICA    JARDINIERE    (16    Inches    in    Height). 

Decorated   in   Blue. 

Showing   Chinese    Influence. 

Puebla,  About  1750. 

Collection  of  Mrs.   Robert  W.  de  Forest. 


shooting  deer.  At  the  base  of  each  of  the  broad  sides  are 
towers  of  churches.  Around  the  outside  are  four  heads  of 
bulls  'in  bold  relief,   two  at  each   side,  and  at  each  end  a 


68 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


modeled  cow's  head.  These  are  colored  brown  and  serve 
the  purpose  of  handles.  The  peculiar  style  of  the  painting, 
in  which  the  figures  are  outlined  in  dark  brown,  would  seem 
to  indicate  a  common  origin  for  this  and  a  large  tub-shaped 
basin  in  the  Museum  collection  (see  illustration  23),  which 
in  form  is  distinctly  Spanish,  while  the  blue  ornamentation, 


25.    MAIOLICA  BARREL-SHAPED  JARDINIERES. 

Blue   Decoration. 

Showing   Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,  About  1750. 

Collection   of    Sefior   Rafael    Cervantes. 


consisting  of  figures,  outlined  in  dark  brown,  shows  Chi- 
nese influence.  A  Chinaman,  with  raised  umbrella,  is 
mounted  on  a  horse,  two  Chinamen  are  flying  a  kite,  while 
a  fourth,  also  holding  an  umbrella,  is  painted  beneath. 
Four  parrots  are  perched  on  a  nopal,  or  cactus.  On  the 
under  side  of  this  extraordinary  piece  appear  the  initials 
C.  S.,  painted  in  blue  (see  chapter  on  Marks).  Frequently 
we  find  a  vessel  of  Chinese  shape,  bearing  decorative  designs 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


69 


in  Spanish  style,  and  occasionally  the  two  varieties  of  paint- 
ing are  combined. 

The  third  variety  of  ornamentation,  in  which  the  Chi- 
nese influence  is  strongly  marked,  is  that  in  which  European 


26.    MAIOLICA  BOWL  AND  VASE. 

Blue   Decoration. 

Showing  Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,  About  1760. 


figures  and  animals  have  been  painted  in  imitation  of  Ori- 
ental work.  These  paintings  remind  us  of  the  work  of  Ori- 
ental artists  which  distinguishes  a  variety  of  Chinese  porce- 
lain, sometimes  known  as  "Lowestoft,"  or  "Heraldic"  china, 
copied  from  foreign  designs,  made  for  the  European  market. 


70 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


Special  decorations  were  executed  in  China  for  the  Mexican 
trade,  including  plates  and  other  articles  embellished  with 
the  double-headed,  crowned  eagle  of  the  Austrian  dynasty. 
This  same  heraldic  emblem  is  frequently  found  on  tiles  and 
tile  panels  made  in  Puebla  previous  to  1700.    This  third  style 


27.     MAIOLICA    VASE    (21    Inches    in    Height). 

Blue    Decoration. 

Showing   Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,   About   1700. 


is  found  at  its  best  on  certain  tiles  which  were  evidently  pro- 
duced at  a  single  factory.  The  figure  designs  are  usually  of 
Spanish  type,  but  the  paintings  of  animals  have  been  appar- 
ently adapted  from  Chinese  decorations.  On  the  faces  of 
many  of  these  tiles  will  be  found  the  letter  F,  penciled  in  blue, 
in  all  probability  standing  for  the  name  of  the  decorator.   On 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


7* 


other  examples,  however,  are  found,  among  the  decorative 
details,  a  fly  or  bee,  which  by  some  collectors  has  been  sup- 
posed to  stand  for  the  initial  B.  Several  of  these  tiles  are 
shown  in  illustration  41. 


28.    MAIOLICA  VASE. 

Decorated   in   Blue. 

Showing   Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,  About  1700. 


The  fourth  variety  is  distinguished  by  open  medallions 
of  ornate  shapes,  in  which  are  floral  embellishments,  and 
which  are  surrounded  by  a  ground-work  of  conventional 
decorations  in  blue.  Some  of  these  are  elegant  in  concep- 
tion and  execution  and  imitate  in  a  creditable  manner  the 


-J2  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

best  designs  found  on  their  Oriental  models.  To  this  class 
belongs  the  vase  shown  in  illustration  21,  and  the  large  bar- 
rel-shaped jardiniere  figured  in  illustration  24,  in  the  col- 
lection of  Mrs.  Robert  W.  de  Forest,  of  New  York. 

Other  examples  of  the  medallion  style  are  represented 
in  illustration  25,  of  two  large,  barrel-shaped  flower  pots, 
in  the  collection  of  Sehor  Rafael  Cervantes;  illustration  26, 
of  a  large  bowl,  made  for  a  Capuchin  convent,  and  a  beauti- 
ful vase  of  ginger-jar  form;  illustration  27,  of  a  vase,  twenty- 
one  inches  in  height,  which  combines  the  first  and  fourth 
styles;  and  illustration  28,  of  a  large  mortar-shaped  vessel 
with  handles.  In  illustrations  25  and  26  we  see  examples  of 
the  best  period  of  maiolica  decoration  in  Oriental  taste. 

Mr.  Thomas  A.  Janvier,  in  his  Mexican  Guide,  states  that 
the  first  members  of  the  Order  of  Capuchinas  in  Mexico, 
coming  from  a  convent  of  the  order  in  Toledo,  Spain,  ar- 
rived in  the  Capital  of  Mexico  October  8,  1665,  where  they 
erected  a  convent  which  was  dedicated  in  1666.  In  1756  the 
primitive  church  built  by  them  was  replaced  by  a  larger 
structure,  and  in  1861  both  convent  and  church  were  de- 
molished. It  is  probable  that  the  bowl  shown  in  illustration 
26  was  made  about  the  time  of  the  completion  of  the  second 
church  building. 


IV.      THE   HISPANO-MEXICAN,    OR   PUEBLAN,    STYLE. 

In  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  polychrome 
decorations  were  applied  to  the  Spanish  pottery  of  Talavera, 
in  imitation  of  Italian  maiolica,  in  which  greens,  browns, 
purples  and  yellows  were  conspicuous.  As  we  have  already 
seen,  a  large,  deep  bowl  painted  in  these  colors  (see  illus- 
tration 4)  is  owned  by  Mrs.  Robert  W.  de  Forest,  of  New 
York,  and  a  similar  example,  ornamented  with  a  central 
figure  of  a  lion,  in  purplish  brown,  is  in  the  collection  of  this 


MAIOUCA  OF  MEXICO 


73 


Museum  (see  illustration  5).     In  the  same  collection  is  a 
tazza  painted  in  yellow,  light  green  and  pale  brown  (see 


29.     MAIOLICA   VASE    (18   Inches   in    Height). 
Decorated  in   Polychrome. 

Puebla,    1780-1800. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 

(See   Frontispiece,   for   Reverse   Side). 

illustration  3).    The  coloring  of  these  pieces  is, characteristic 
of  the  degraded  Talavera  pottery  of  the  later  period. 


74 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


About  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the 
Pueblan  potters  began  to  develop  a  style  of  their  own,  and 
materially  increased  the  range  of  their'  color  scale,  so  that 
on  ware  of  this  period  we  find  designs  in  blue,  green,  yel- 
low, red,  brown  and  black.  By  this  time  the  Chinese  in- 
fluence had  entirely  disappeared.  Figure  painting  in  gaudy 
coloring  came  into  vogue.     In  illustration  29  is  shown  the 


-    .-    --~- 

K^B^te 

I  <  <?.«■ 

<? 

*^9M 

JUiS 

~ 

—      '.'" 

30. 


MAIOLICA   DRUG  JARS    (8&  Inches  in  Height). 
Decorated   in   Natural   Colors. 
Puebla,   About   1830. 
In  the   Museum   Collection. 


reverse  side  of  the  vase  represented  in  the  frontispiece.  This 
is  one  of  the  best  examples  of  this  style  that  has  yet  come 
to  light.  Two  albarelli,  one  decorated  with  tulips  in  red 
and  green,  the  other  with  roses  in  natural  colors,  are  shown 
in  illustration  30. 

At  a  later  date  other  tints  were  added,  such  as  mauve, 
or  purplish  rose.  This  beautiful  color  is  found  on  several  ex- 
amples of  the  ware  in  this  Museum,  including  a  large  basin, 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  75 

and  a  small  two-handled  bowl  (illustration  31),  and  the  ap- 


31.     MAIOLICA   BOWL   (7%   Inches   Diam.). 

Decorated  in   Mauve  and   Green. 

Puebla,   About  1820. 

In   the    Museum    Collection. 


32.     MAIOLICA  COVERED   BOWL   (9yz  Inches  Diam.). 

Decorated  in   Mauve,   Green   and   Brown. 

Puebla,    About    1820. 

Collection  of  Mr.   Albert   Pepper. 

proximate  date  of  its  introduction  is  established  by  means 


76 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


of  a  large  covered  bowl,  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Albert 
Pepper,  which  bears  on  one  side  the  inscription  "Viva  Fer- 
nando 7th"  (illustration  32).  The  ornamentation  consists  of 
roses  painted  in  this  peculiar  tone,  varied  with  green.     Since 


33.     MAIOLICA    BASIN    (20^    Inches). 

Decorated  in   Polychrome. 

"The  Baptism  of  the  Saviour." 

Puebla,    About    1800. 

Collection  of  Mr.  Albert  Pepper. 


Ferdinand  VII.  of  Spain  reigned  from  1808  to  1833,  this 
example  probably  dates  from  the  first  quarter  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  and  fixes  the  age  of  other  pieces  showing 
this  rare  and  beautiful  color. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


77 


The  Hispano-Mexican,  or  Pneblan,  style  may  be  said 
to  cover  the  period  from  about  1800  to  i860.  During  this 
later  period  were  produced  salt  cellars,  benitiers,  large  cir- 


34.     MAIOLICA  JARDINIERE   (18  Inches   in   Height). 
Decorated  in   Polychrome. 

Puebla.  About  1800. 
In  the   Museum   Collection. 


cular  dishes,  albarelli,  flower  vases  of  many  forms,  cup  hold- 
ers, bowls  of  various  sizes  and  shapes,  articles  for  toilet  use 
and  many  other  objects  of  original,  and  frequently  inartistic, 


78 


MMOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


design 


A  large  bowl  or  basin  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Albert 
Pepper,  is  embellished  with  a  polychrome  painting  repre- 
senting the  baptism  of  the  Saviour  (illustration   33).     An 


35.     MAIOLICA   BASIN   (16   Inches). 

Decorated   in    Mauve,   Blue   and   Brown. 

"Dancing  the   Fandango." 

Puebla,   About   1820. 
In  the   Museum   Collection. 


artistic  flower  barrel,  in  the  Museum  collection,  is  adorned 
with  flowers  and  foliage  in  rose  color  and  green  (illustra- 
tion 34).  A  large  bowl,  in  the  same  collection,  bears  a 
crudely  painted  scene  intended  to  portray  the  dancing  of 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


79 


the  fandango,  encircled  by  a  handsome  border  design  in 
blackish  brown  (illustration  35).  In  illustration  36  are 
shown  two  salt  cellars  decorated  with  fishes  in  yellow  and 
green,  and  a  benitier,  or  holy  water  stoup,  from  a  Carmelite 
convent,  bearing  the  escutcheon  of  the  order,  which  was  es- 


36.    MAIOLICA  SALT  CELLARS  AND   BENITIER. 

Polychrome   Decorations. 

(2j4,  8^4   and  3/4   Inches  in  Height). 

Puebla,    About    1830. 

The  Benitier  Bears  the  Carmelite  Arms. 

In   the    Museum    Collection. 


tablished  in  Mexico  in  the  year  1585.  A.  salt  cellar  in  red 
and  green,  and  a  cup  holder,  with  decorative  designs  in 
delicate  shades  of  mauve  and  green,  the  latter  in  the  col- 
lection of  Mr.  Albert  H.  Pitkin,  of  Hartford,  Conn.,  are 
figured  in  illustration  37. 

Before  the  middle   of  the  nineteenth  century  the  de- 


8o 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


cadence  began.  Gaudy  and  crude  colors  were  much  em- 
ployed and  over-decoration  vulgarized  the  ware.  About 
the  year  i860  jugs  and  other  vessels,  fashioned  in  the 
forms  of  hideous  heads  and  grotesque  figures,  came  into 
vogue.  About  this  time,  or  perhaps  a  few  years  earlier,  a 
pale,  grayish  blue  ground  color  was  used  extensively  on 
plates,  vases  and  other  pieces,  quite  similar  to  that  seen 
on  one  variety  of  Italian  drug  jars.  After  that  the  ware 
lost  every  artistic  feature  and  degenerated  into  the  ordinary 


~t€^M 

jHc^B  »•*■'* 

Sills 

^H 

■^3«^?V^*^ 

T^t^^l 

'm     -  ~*  i 

&£&&$*?' I 

jK^fk 

.. 

'-■■    ■  ■'.■                      '•  ■  -■-'■* 

37.    MAIOLICA  CUP  HOLDER  AND  SALT  CELLAR. 
Decorated   in   Colors. 
Puebla,    About    1830. 


commercial  product  of  Puebla  and  Oaxaca  of  the  present 
day. 

In  addition  to  tin  enameled  pottery  another  variety  of 
ware  was  produced  to  some  extent  in  Mexico,  under  Span- 
ish influence.  We  refer  to  the  sgraffito  earthenware  made 
at  Guanajuato.  This  ware  is  covered  with  a  thin  wash,  or 
engobe,  of  white  clay,  glazed  with  lead.  The  decorative 
devices  are  scratched  through  the  white  slip  to  show  the  red 
color  of  the  clay  beneath,  and  afterwards  touched  in  places 
with  green  oxide  of  copper.  The  process  is  the  same  as  that 
employed  by  the  Italian  potters  in  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth centuries  and  is  identical  with  that  of  the  Pennsyl- 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


81 


vania-German  potters  of  the  eighteenth  century.  A  dish  of 
this  character,  made  about  1830,  is  shown  in  illustration  38, 
which  is  inserted  here  for  the  purpose  of  calling  attention  to 


38.     SGRAFFITO   DISH    (16^   Inches   Long). 

Lead   Glazed. 

Showing  Spanish  or  Italian  Influence. 

Made  at   Guanajuato,    Mexico,   About   1830. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


an  entirely  distinct  art,  which  was  introduced  at  a  later 
period  by  the  Spanish  potters.  The  decorative  color  effects 
were  obtained  by  engraving,  instead  of  painting,  thus  utiliz- 
ing the  natural  colors  of  the  clay,  red  and  yellow. 


IX.     The  Tin  Enameled  Tiles  of  Mexico. 


It  is  probable  that  the  first  maiolica  tiles  used  for  mural 
decoration  in  Mexico  were  brought  from  Spain,  but  before 
the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  tile  industry  became 
well  established  in  Puebla  and  the  native  tile-makers  from 
that  time  on  were  abundantly  able  to  fill  the  requirements 
of  the  home  market.  Not  only  did  they  produce  geomet- 
rical and  conventional  patterns  of  great  variety  (at  first  in 
blue  and  later  in  polychrome),  but  they  employed  competent 
artists  who  painted  pictures  and  figure  subjects  on  large 
panels  composed  of  numerous  small  tiles,  for  insertion  in 
the  exterior  and  interior  walls  of  buildings.  A  square  or 
panel  of  four  or  five  inch  white  tiles,  consisting  frequently 
of  seven  rows  of  five  each,  and  often  of  a  greater  number, 
occasionally  as  many  as  one  hundred  and  fifty  being  com- 
bined in  a  single  design,  was  treated  as  a  canvas,  on  which 
the  picture  was  painted  in  vitrifiable  colors.  The  set  of 
small  tiles  could  then  be  separated  for  transportation  and 
put  together  again  in  the  place  for  which  it  was  designed. ' 
Figures  of  saints,  of  varying  degrees  of  excellence,  were 
painted  for  ecclesiastical  edifices,  and  some  of  these  have 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  appreciative  persons  who  have  set 
them  in  the  walls  of  their  houses.  Illustration  47  repre- 
sents a  panel  showing  the  Virgin  of  Guadalupe,  at  the  base 
of  which  are  two  cups  for  holy  water.  The  colors  are  sub- 
dued and  harmonious,  the  border  design  of  roses  being  ex- 
ecuted in  their  natural  tints.  This  panel,  though  of  much 
more  recent  date,  lias  been  set  in  the  wall  of  the  passage 
leading  from  the  patio  to  the  garden  behind  the  Casa  de 

82 


39-     MAIOLICA  TILES. 

Blue  Ground,   Design   Reserved  in  White. 

Showing  Spanish  and  Chinese   Influence. 

Puebla,  1650-1680. 

In   the    Museum    Collection. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  83 

Alvarado,  in  Coyoacan,  near  the  City  of  Mexico,  which  was 
erected  by  Alvarado,  one  of  the  conquistadors,  about  1521, 
and  is  now  occupied  by  Mrs.  Zelia  Nuttall,  the  eminent 
archaeologist. 

The  native  Puebla  tiles  used  for  interior  wall  decoration 
are  found  to  be  of  practically  uniform  size,  about  four  and 
three-quarters  to  five  inches  square,  almost  invariably 
slightly  curved  or  convex,  and  beveled  on  the  edges,  so  that 
they  could  be  used  indiscriminately  for  flat  or  rounded  sur- 
faces, such  as  columns,  etc.  (see  illustration  58).  On  the 
upper  surface  of  a  majority  of  the  Puebla  tiles  may  be  seen 
three  rough  spots,  varying  in  size  from  that  of  a  pin's  head 
to  that  of  a  pea,  arranged  in  the  form  of  a  triangle, — the 
scars  left  by  the  cockspurs  or  clay  supports  used  to  separate 
the  pieces  in  the  kiln.  In  addition  to  these  features  the 
dark  blue  color  of  the  Mexican  tiles  is  always  in  perceptible 
relief,  an  effect  caused  by  the  thickness  of  this  pigment. 
Of  thousands  of  Puebla  tiles,  from  various  places  and  of 
many  periods,  examined  by  the  writer,  there  was  scarcely 
one  which  did  not  possess  some  or  all  of  these  characteris- 
tics. These  peculiarities  are  so  marked  that  the  collector 
will  have  no  difficulty  in  distinguishing  the  Mexican  from 
the  Spanish,  or  Talavera,  productions  of  the  same  period, 
which  latter  are  usually  somewhat  larger  in  size,  painted 
in  flat  colors  and  usually  devoid  of  the  three  rough  kiln 
marks.  Serior  Joseph  Font  y  Guma,  of  Barcelona,  Spain, 
author  of  "Rajolas  Valencianas  y  Catalanas,"  who  has  given 
much  time  to  the  study  of  Spanish  tiles,  states  that  as  a 
general  rule  they  are  flat,  but  some  are  slightly  curved,  ow- 
ing to  accidental  warping  in  drying  or  baking.  The  oldest 
tiles  of  Valencia,  while  perfectly  level  on  the  surface,  were 
made  with  beveled  edges.  At  the  beginning  of  the  seven- 
tenth  century  the  edges  became  less  beveled  and  at  length 
were  made  at  right  angles.     Those  from  Manises,  as  well 


84  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

as  the  Andalusian  and  Castilian  tiles,  are  perfectly  flat  and 
without  the  sloping  edges.  This  writer  figures  in  his  book 
on  tiles  several  examples  which  bear  a  striking  resemblance 
to  some  of  those  found  in  the  old  churches  of  Puebla. 

The  Mexican  tiles  used  for  exterior  embellishment 
are  not  so  uniform  in  size,  some  of  them  reaching  the  di- 
mensions of  eight  or  more  inches.  These  are  often  found  in 
the  panels  and  borders  of  facades.  In  addition  to  the  stand- 
ard tiles  for  perpendicular  surfaces  will  be  found  corner 
or  angle  tiles,  large,  square,  curved  tiles  for  facing  pillars, 
mouldings  for  cornices,  and  numerous  forms  of  architectural 
ornaments  and  modeled  figures,  for  roofs,  domes,  minarets 
and  pilasters. 

Little  is  known  of  the  history  of  the  early  tile  manufac- 
tories of  Puebla.  That  they  were  numerous  may  be  inferred 
from  the  great  variety  of  divergent  styles  shown  in  the  tiles 
which  have  been  preserved.  Among  the  earliest  are  those 
blue  and  white  tiles,  some  of  which  date  back  to  about  1575, 
with  conventional  and  geometrical  patterns,  in  Talavera 
style.  A  group  of  interesting  tiles,-  examples  of  which  are 
figured  in  illustration  40,  exhibits  a  variety  of  animal  and 
plant  motives,  in  the  tattooed  style,  and  shows  what  spirited 
effects  can  be  obtained  by  a  few  bold  strokes  of  the  brush. 
In  this  style  of  work  the  rabbit,  or  hare,  is  frequently  rep- 
resented, in  various  attitudes,  occasionally  suggestive  of  the 
kangaroo,  standing  on  two  legs  (see  illustration  8).  This 
animal  motive  is  also  found  on  the  early  Spanish  tiles.  Some 
of  those  produced  between  1650  and  1700  reflect  strongly 
the  Chinese  taste,  by  means  of  painting  of  mandarins,  cher- 
ubs and  birds,  rudely  reserved  in  white  on  a  brilliant,  dark 
blue  ground  (illustrations  39  and  40).  Belonging  to  another 
class  of  about  the  same  period  are  those  tiles  which  are 
evidently  the  product  of  a  single  factory,  bearing  animal 
and  figure  designs  in  medium  blue  on  a  white  ground, — 


4i.     MAIOLICA  TILES. 
Painted   in   Blue. 
In  Combined  Spanish  and  Chinese  Taste. 
Some    are    Signed    with    the    Letter    F,    Others    with    the    Figure    of   a 

Puebla,    1650-1700. 


Bee. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


85 


dromedaries,  elephants,  horses,  stags,  wolves,  dogs,  boar 
hunts,  bull  fights,  and  figures  of  saints,* — painted  appar- 
ently by  the  same  artist,  in  combined  Spanish  and  Chinese 
manner,  many  of  which  are  signed  on  their  faces  with  the 


42.        MAIOLICA    TILE. 

Decorated   in   Blue. 

Figure  of  Santa  Rosa  de  Lima. 

From  an  Old   Cemetery   Near   Puebla. 

Puebla,    1650-1700. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


letter  F.,  probably  the  initial  of  the  decorator  (see  illustra- 
tion 41). 

While  the  great  majority  of  the  tile  designs  of  Puebla 


*  Santa  Rosa  de  Lima,  who  is  supposed  to  be  represented  on  the 
tile  shown  in  illustration  42,  was  born  in  Peru  in  1586  and  died  in 
1617.  Dr.  Robert  H.  Lamborn,  in  his  "Mexican  Painting  and  Paint- 
ers," refers  to  her  as  "the  only  born  American  canonized  saint." 
She  "was  duly  enrolled  among  the  saints  in  1671  by  Clement  X.,  it 
having  been  juridically  proven  by  one  hundred  and  eighty  witnesses 
that  several  miracles  were  wrought  by  her  means."  A  beautiful 
portrait  of  Santa  Rosa,  painted  on  copper,  is  in  the  Lamborn  collec- 
tion of  Mexican  paintings  in  this  Museum. 


86 


MMOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


show  in  an  unmistakable  manner  a  Spanish  or  Chinese 
origin,  a  curious  exception  has  been  noted  in  a  series  of 
bine  and  white  tiles  recently  acquired  by  this  Museum, 
which  reveal,  in  a  marked  degree,  the  influence  of  early 
.Aztec  art  and  may  be  the  work  of  a  native  Indian  decorator. 
These  examples  are  painted  with  figures  of  birds,  animals, 
men  and  women  and  human  heads,  in  a  few  bold  strokes  and 


43.       MAIOLICA  TILE. 

Decorated    in    Blue. 

Showing  Aztec  Influence. 

Puebla,    1650-1700. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


series  of  heavy  dots,  the  outlined  heads  bearing  a  striking 
resemblance  to  those  found  in  ancient  Mexican  codices. 
Some  of  these  tiles  are  shown  at  the  bottom  of  illustration 
44.  As  will  be  seen,  the  profiles  and  costumes  are  distinctly 
Aztec  in  type.  Special  attention  is  called  to  the  curious 
example  figured  in  illustration  43,  which  reveals  an  attempt 
to  caricature  an  Indian,  with  enormous  head,  surmounted 
by  a  grotesque  bonnet  and  supported  by  dwarf-like  legs. 
And  last  came  the  polychrome  productions,  in  which 


44-    MAIOLICA   TILES. 

Painted   in   Blue. 

The    Upper    Pair    Reveal    Spanish    Influence,    the    Middle    Pair    are    in    Chinese    Style, 

while  the  Lower  Ones  Reflect  Aztec  Art. 

Puebla,    1650-1700. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  87 

yellow,  green,  brown,  mauve,  and  blue  are  most  prominent, 
in  close  imitation  of  the  later  Spanish  productions,  which 
are  to  be  seen  in  the  old  churches  of  Cuba  and  other  insular 
possessions  of  Spain.  After  the  decadence  had  set  in,  these 
polychrome  tile  paintings  rapidly  lost  their  artistic  and  imi- 
tative qualities,  finally  degenerating  into  the  crudest  daubs 
of  unskilled  workmen. 

The  lavish  use  of  tin  enameled  tiles,  in  rich  colorings, 
is  a  striking  architectural  feature  of  Mexico.  Previous  to 
the  year  1600  there  were  many  churches,  convents,  and  other 
religious  foundations,  public  houses,  and  private  residences 
whose  interiors  and  exteriors  were  often  literally  covered 
with  mosaic  patterns  in  glazed  tiles,  many  of  which  are  yet 
standing,  with  their  original  tile-work  still  in  place. 
Through  the  country  surrounding  Puebla,  at  the  foot  of  the 
snow-capped  volcano,  Popocatepetl,  are  scores  of  ancient 
churches,  whose  tile-covered  domes  and  towers  may  be  seen 
from  a  long  distance  glistening  in  the  sun.  It  is  to  these 
early  structures  that  we  must  look  for  evidences  of  the 
antiquity  of  the  tile  industry  in  Mexico. 

The  convent  of  San  Francisco,  at  Atlixco,  which  is  be- 
lieved to  date  back  to  about  1575,  still  contains  some  of 
the  tiles  which  were  placed  there  at  the  time  of  its  con- 
struction. In  1604  the  Carmelite  convent  of  San  Jose  was 
founded  in  Puebla  although  it  was  not  dedicated  until  1622. 
In  a  book  written  by  Dr.  Jose  Gomez  de  la  Parra  and  printed 
in  that  city  in  1732,*  it  is  stated  that  the  central  part  was 
tiled,  with  a  cupola  in  each  of  its  four  corners  and  a  font  of 
tiles  with  its  basin  of  stone  work  in  the  centre.  Quoting 
from  page  83  of  the  same  work,  "But  let  us  not  leave  the 
choir  without   noticing  the   stalls   of  the   nuns,   which   are 


*  Fundacion  y  Primer  Siglo  del  muy  religioso  convento  de  Sr. 
S.  Joseph  de  Religiosas  Carmelitas  Dcscahas  de  la  Ciudad  de  la 
Puebla  de  los  Angeles,  etc.,  p.  79. 


88  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

certain  benches  of  tiles  with  the  bottoms  and  backs  made 
of  wood."  and  on  the  same  page  mention  is  made  of  a 
staircase  of  tiles. 

The  present  Cathedral  of  Puebla,  built  in  the  Spanish 
Renaissance  style,  was  begun  about  1550,  and  was  conse- 
crated in  1649,  as  we  learn  from  a  publication  which  ap- 
peared in  that  year  in  Puebla,  entitled  "Sermon  sobre  la 
dedicacion  de  la  Catedral  de  Puebla,  por  el  Lie.  Diego 
Ramirez  Grimaldo,"  the  facade  not  being  finished,  however, 
until  1664,  while  other  portions  of  the  building  were  not 
completed  until  later.  The  dome  is  enriched  with  yellow 
and  green  tile  mosaics  representing  large  circles  enclosing 
many  pointed  stars,  and  the  domes  and  lanterns  (cimborios) 
capping  the  towers  are  encrusted  with  tiles  in  red  and  yel- 
low. 

Among  the  more  important  structures  in  Puebla  dec- 
orated with  tile-work,  is  the  church  of  Guadalupe,  which  was 
erected  about  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century.  The 
surface  of  the  facade  is  almost  entirely  encrusted  with  tile- 
work.  In  the  spandrels  are  figures  of  flying  angels,  with 
yellow  garments  and  orange  wings,  while  the  intervening 
surface  of  the  faqade  is  decorated  with  zigzag  bands  in  blue, 
green,  orange  and  white.  The  tiles  at  the  bases  of  the 
towers  are  green  and  red,  with  pictured  panels  representing 
the  sun  and  moon  with  orange  bodies  and  yellow  rays,  on  a 
blue  ground.  Beneath  these  are  four  larger  panels  in  colored 
tiles  illustrating  the  legend  of  the  apparition  of  the  Virgin 
Mary  of  Guadalupe.  They  are  signed  J.  H.  E.  The  in- 
scription running  through  these  panels,  beginning  with  the 
lower  left  hand  corner  and  reading  upward  and  then  down 
the  other  side,  is  "NON  FECIT  TALITER  OMNE 
NATIONI"  (illustration  45).  The  last  panel  of  the  series 
is  shown  in  the  accompanying  colored  plate. 

The  legend,  as  given  by  several  of  the  earlier  chroni- 
clers, runs  as  follows: 


45-     FACADE   OF  THE   CHURCH    OF   GUADALUPE. 

Puebla,  About  1750. 

Showing  Tile   Panels,   Illustrating  the   Legend  of  the  Apparition   of  the 

Virgin   of   Guadalupe. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  89 

Two  or  three  miles  from  the  City  of  Mexico,  where  now 
is  the  suburb  of  Guadalupe,  is  a  small  mountain  called 
Tepeyacac.  On  December  9th,  of  the  year  1531,  at  early 
dawn,  an  Indian  named  Juan  Diego,'  recently  converted  to 
the  Roman  Catholic  faith,  was  passing  by  this  place  on  his 
way  to  mass,  and  when  he  had  reached  the  top  of  the  hill 
he  heard  the  singing  of  angels  and  beheld  a  shining  cloud 
surrounded  by  a  rainbow,  in  the  midst  of  which  appeared 
a  beautiful  lady  who  announced  to  him  that  she  was  the 
Virgin  Mary  and  directed  him  to  go  to  the  bishop  and  tell 
him  that  it  was  her  will  that  a  temple  should  be  erected 
in  her  honor  on  that  spot.  The  Indian,  as  instructed,  went 
at  once  to  the  palace  of  the  prelate,  Senor  Don  Juan  de 
Zumarraga,  and  related  what  he  had  seen.  The  bishop 
received  the  story  with  incredulity  and  Juan  Diego,  return- 
ing to  the  place  where  he  had  seen  the  apparition  found 
the  beautiful  lady  there  awaiting  him.  He  announced  the 
result  of  his  visit  and  was  charged  to  repair  to  the  bishop 
a  second  time  and  repeat  the  message.  On  the  ensuing 
Sunday  the  Indian  again  went  to  mass.  After  the  service 
he  made  a  second  visit  to  the  bishop's  palace  and  repeated 
his  story.  The  prelate  was  much  impressed  with  what  he 
had  heard,  but  requested  the  messenger  to  return  once  more 
with  some  definite  sign  that  the  command  was  from  the 
Mother  of  God.  Going  back  to  the  mountain,  Juan  Diego 
reported  what  the  bishop  had  said  to  him  and  he  was  or- 
dered to  come  again  on  the  next  day  for  the  sign  which 
would  be  given  to  him.  The  serious  illness  of  his  uncle 
prevented  the  Indian  from  appearing  at  the  appointed  time, 
but  on  the  following  day,  December  12th,  as  he  was  passing 
near  that  place  in  search  of  a  confessor,  the  Lady  again 
stood  before  him.  Telling  her  of  his  urgent  errand  she 
bade  him  take  no  further  thought  of  his  uncle's  illness,  as 
already  he  had  been  cured.     She  then  instructed  him  to  cut 


9o  MAJOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

some  flowers  in  that  barren  place,  which,  much  to  his  sur- 
prise, he  found  growing  there.  This  he  did  and  after  she 
had  blessed  them  and  arranged  them  in  his  tilma,  or  blanket, 
the  Virgin  told  him  this  was  the  sign  that  the  bishop  had 
demanded. 

Juan  Diego  waited  patiently  before  the  palace  until 
the  Bishop  appeared  and  when  he  opened  his  tilma  the 
flowers  fell  out  and  the  image  of  the  Holy  Virgin  was  seen 
painted  on  the  garment.  On  his  return  to  his  home  Juan 
Diego  found  his  uncle  cured  of  his  fever,  even  as  the  Vir- 
gin had  declared  to  him,  and  on  the  spot  where  the  Lady 
had  appeared  to  the  Indian  the  Bishop  caused  a  chapel  to  be 
erected.  This  is  believed  by  the  people  to  be  the  true  story 
of  the  apparition  of  the  Holy  Maria  de  Guadalupe,  and  to 
this  day  the  miraculous  painting  is  preserved  in  the  church 
at  Guadalupe. 

The  fac,ade  of  the  church  of  Nuestra  Sehora  de  la  Luz 
contains  eight  tile  panels,  the  four  larger  of  which  repre- 
sent, in  yellow,  blue,  green  and  brown,  Santa  Ana,  Saint 
Joachim,  San  Jose  de  la  Luz,  and  La  Santisima  Madre  de 
la  Luz,  respectively.  The  four  secondary  panels  are  painted 
in  polychrome,  with  a  fountain,  a  well,  a  pine  tree  and  a 
palm.  The  construction  of  this  church  was  commenced  in 
1 761  and  it  is  probable  that  it  was  not  completed  until 
several  years  later.  The  tile-work,  therefore,  belongs  to 
the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

The  ancient  convent  of  Santa  Rosa,  finished  in  1698,  is 
extensively  ornamented  with  glazed  paneling,  the  walls  of 
the  patio  and  kitchen,  in  particular,  presenting  a  great  va- 
riety of  tile  designs  (illustration  48). 

The  church  of  Santo  Domingo  in  Puebla  contains  some 
of  the  most  beautiful  examples  of  tile-work  in  Mexico.  Over 
the  inside  of  the  gateway  leading  from  the  street  to  the 
courtyard  is  a  tile  panel  with  figure  of  Saint  Michael  (San 


* 


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yELLH 


TILE    PANEL 

In  Facade  of  Church  of  Guadalupe 
Puebla,  Mexico,   Eighteenth  Century 


1 


47.     MAIOLICA  TILE  PANEL. 

Painted  in   Polychrome. 

"The   Virgin  of  Guadalupe." 

Puebla,   About   1800. 

In   the    Patio  of  the   Casa  de   Alvarado,    Coyoacan,    Mexico. 


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Miguel)  inscribed  "QUIS  UT  DEOS."  In  the  chapel  of 
the  Rosary  belonging  to  this  church  is  a  dado  of  blue  and 
white  tile-work  about  four  feet  in  height,  showing  Moorish 
influence,  bordered  at  the  top  by  a  band  of  modeled  tiles 
with  cherubs'  heads  in  bold  relief  and  beautiful  coloring, 
alternating  with  the  arms  of  St.  Dominic  (Santo  Domingo), 
in  black  and  white  (illustration  49).  Adjoining  at  the  right 
are  sections  of  relief  tile  designs  in  Moresque  style,  somewhat 
similar  to  some  of  the  tile-work  in  the  Alhambra.  Near  the 
entrance  of  the  church  a  handsome  holy  water  font,  in 
enameled  blue  and  white  pottery,  is  set  in  the  dado  of  tiling 
(illustration  50).  The  exterior  of  the  dome  of  the  chapel  is 
trimmed  with  bands  and  columns  of  glazed  tile,  while  mod- 
eled figures  of  angels  of  the  same  material  surmount  the 
spaces  over  the  windows.  The  chapel  of  the  Rosary  was  so 
elaborately  decorated  with  tile-work,  gilded  carvings  and 
paintings  that  it  was  called  the  eighth  wonder  of  the  world. 
A  work  published  in  Puebla  in  1690,  entitled  "Sermon  de  la 
Dedicacion  de  la  Capilla  del  Rosario,  Su  Autor  Dr.  Diego 
Victoria  Salazar,"  seems  to  prove  beyond  question  that  this 
chapel  was  finished  in  that  year.  There  also  appeared  in 
the  same  year  in  Puebla  another  work  entitled  "La  Octava 
Maravilla  Capilla  del  Rosario,  Sin  Autor,"  which  means 
that  this  work  describing  the  eighth  wonder  of  the  world, 
the  chapel  of  the  Rosary,  was  published  anonymously. 

An  examination  of  the  tile-work  in  the  chapel  of  the 
Rosary  shows  beyond  question  that  the  dado  was  con- 
structed when  the  chapel  was  originally  decorated,  so  that 
we  may  safely  assume  that  these  tiles  were  made  previous  to 
the  year  1690.  They  are  in  blue  and  white  and  undoubtedly 
of  Puebla  work  of  that  period,  as  they  possess  the  irregular, 
curved  surfaces,  so  characteristic  of  the  Mexican  products. 
It  is  also  highly  probable  that  the  relief  border  tiles  show- 
ing cherubs'  heads  are  of  the  same  age,  as  there  seems  to 
be  no  evidence  that  these  were  inserted  at  a  later  date. 


92  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

The  church  of  San  Jose,  erected  about  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  is  also  rich  in  old  Puebla  tile-work.  At 
the  portal  are  columns  and  pilasters,  four  below  and  four 
above,  which  are  faced  with  glazed  tiles  in  diagonal  and 
zigzag  stripes, — yellow,  white  and  blue, — while  the  dome  of 
the  adjoining  chapel  is  also  covered  with  mosaic  tile-work 
(see  illustration  51). 

In  the  brick  faqade  of  the  church  of  San  Francisco 
(commenced  in  1667)  are  fourteen  panels  of  tile-work  repre- 
senting vases  filled  with  flowers  (illustration  52).  A  band 
extending  across  the  front,  at  each  side  of  the  doorway,  is 
composed  of  eight-inch  tiles  with  polychrome  paintings  rep- 
resenting animals  and  birds  in  colors,  beneath  which  is  a 
border  of  grotesque  masks  or  heads  painted  in  green  and 
yellow  (illustration  53).  Two  of  these  tiles  with  figures  of 
a  bull  and  parrot  may  be  seen  in  the  Museum  collection. 
Sylvester  Baxter  states  that  the  faqade  belongs  to  the  eight- 
eenth century.  In  the  lavatory  of  this  church  until  recently 
stood  a  handsome  lavabo  of  tiles,  decorated  with  floral  de- 
signs and  bearing  the  escutcheon  of  the  Franciscan  monks 
(illustration  54),  which  order  arrived  in  Mexico  about  1524. 

Other  structures  in  Puebla  which  are  beautified  by  na- 
tive tile-work  are  the  church  of  Carmen,  built  in  the  eight- 
eenth century,  with  gateway  surmounted  by  a  pictured 
panel  representing  a  crowned  Virgin  and  Child;  the  church 
of  Nuestra  Senora  de  la  Soledad,  of  the  same  period,  built 
in  the  Spanish  Renaissance  style,  with  dome  covered  with 
black  and  white  tile  in  geometrical  designs;  the  convent 
church  of  Santa  Catarina,  in  the  Mudejar  style,  with  tower 
completely  encrusted  with  polychrome  tiling;  the  Casa  de 
Alfefiique  (The  House  of  Almond  Cake),  now  a  private  resi- 
dence, entirely  covered  on  front  and  side  with  geometrical 
pattern  in  blue  and  white  tile  set  in  a  dull  red  ground,  built 
in  the  Churrigueresque  style  of  the  late  seventeenth  century, 


Si.    FRONT  OF  CHURCH   OF   SAN  JOSE,    PUEBLA. 

Showing   Tile   Pillars. 

Decorated  in  Polychrome. 


52.    FACADE  OF  CHURCH  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 
Puebla,    About    1750. 
Showing   Tile    Panels. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


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94 


MMOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


so-called  from  its  originator,  Don  Josef  Churriguera,  a  noted 
Spanish  architect;  the  building  now  occupied  by  the  Hotel 
de  France,  interesting  as  showing  in  the  front  wall  sixteen 
panels  containing  glazed  paintings  of  grotesque  life-size 
human  figures,  which  are  said  to  have  been  placed  there  by 
the  owner  of  the  building  in  order  to  annoy  the  occupants 
of  the  structure  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street,  who  had 
endeavored  to  obstruct  his  efforts  to  procure  permission 
from  the  city  to  make  certain  additions  to  the  front. 

The  church  of  San  Miguel  el  Angel,  erected  toward  the 
end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  which  passed  through  many 
vicissitudes  during  the  Pueblan  wars,  at  one  time  contained 
much  handsome  tile-work.  The  dado  included  a  series  of 
five-inch  tiles,  each  bearing  a  painted  figure  of  St.  Michael, 
in  various  attitudes,  colored  yellow,  orange  and  black,  on  a 
dark  blue  ground.  One  of  these  is  shown  in  the  accompany- 
ing plate. 

In  Mexico  City,  situated  a  little  more  than  one  hun- 
dred miles  northwest  of  the  Puebla  potteries,  may  still  be 
seen  some  of  the  old  tiles,  but  the  majority  of  the  buildings 
which  were  so  decorated  have  been  demolished,  and  little 
of  the  old  glazed  tile-work  remains.  The  tile-covered  dome 
of  the  Hotel  del  Jardin,  formerly  a  convent,  was  still  stand- 
ing in  November,  1907,  but  it  was  then  reported  that  the 
building  had  recently  been  sold  and  that  it  would  soon  be 
razed  to  make  room  for  a  modern  structure. 

The  church  of  La  Santissima  Trinidad,  in  the  City  of 
Mexico,  built  in  Churrigueresque  style,  dates  from  1755.  On 
the  roof  of  the  dome  are  large  tile  panels  worked  in  various 
designs,  one  of  them  showing  the  keys  of  Saint  Peter  and 
bearing  inscriptions. 

The  principal  dome  of  the  church  of  San  Francisco,  also 
in  Mexico  City  (1716-1791),  is  covered  with  elaborate  tile 
mosaics. 


c 
u 

•I. 

u 
v 


< 

ir  S 

°  .  "3 

«  °   c 


—    id 

~  =  i 


ClAT*   «UpUl 


MAIOLICA  TILE 

Figure  of  San  Miguel  (St.  Michael 
Made  in  Pnebla,  Mexico,  About   1680 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  95 

At  the  corner  of  the  First  Calle  de  San  Francisco  and 
the  Plaznela  de  Guardiola  stands  what  is  popularly  known 
as  the  Casa  de  los  Azulejos  (the  House  of  Tiles)  now  occupied 
as  the  headquarters  of  the  Jockey  Club.  The  original  struc- 
ture was  built  by  the  Conde  del  Valle  de  Orizaba  in  the  six- 
teenth century  and  was  remodeled  about  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth.  The  style  of  the  building  is  Mudejar,  showing 
Moorish  influence.  The  front  and  side  are  almost  entirely 
covered  with  tile  designs  in  blue,  white  and  yellow  geometri- 
cal patterns.  The  back  portion  of  the  edifice  was  con- 
structed at  a  later  period,  and  the  tile-work,  which  was  in- 
tended to  match  the  glazed  designs  of  the  front,  is  of  com- 
paratively recent  date.  Some  believe  that  the  older  tiles 
used  in  the  construction  of  this  building  are  of  porcelain 
and  were  made  in  China,  but  this  is  manifestly  an  error  which 
has  been  disseminated  by  some  of  the  guide  books  on  Mex- 
ico. The  writer  has  examined  these  tiles  carefully  and  can 
state  without  hesitation  that  they  are  of  the  ordinary  tin 
enameled  pottery  such  as  was  produced  at  Puebla,  about 
the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Sylvester  Baxter,  in 
his  "Spanish-Colonial  Architecture  in  Mexico,"  states  that 
in  the  patio  the  dado  of  the  corridor  and  staircase  are  cov- 
ered with  handsome  tile  patterns,  and  in  the  latter,  the 
arms  of  the  house  are  wrought  in  colored  mosaics. 

The  Carmelite  church  and  monastery  of  Nuestra 
Sehora  del  Carmen  at  San  Angel,  dating  back  to  1628,  is 
a  fine  example  of  tile  decoration.  The  interior  is  beautifully 
embellished  with  intricate  designs  in  glazed  tile,  while  the 
exterior  is  particularly  conspicuous  on  account  of  its  tiled 
domes  with  inlaid  figure  panels  and  glazed  modeled  figures 
and  polychrome  minarets.  The  monastery  portion  of  this 
structure,  which  was  occupied  at  one  time  by  about  four  hun- 
dred monks,  has  fallen  into  decay,  but  the  church  adjoining 
it  is  still  in  use. 


96  MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 

At  Churubusco  the  monastery  church  of  Santa  Maria  de 
los  Angeles  (completed  in  1678),  in  Spanish  Renaissance 
style,  is  still  resplendent  in  its  brilliant  dress  of  tile.  Par- 
ticularly interesting  are  some  panel  designs,  twenty-four 
inches  in  height,  in  the  dado  of  the  choir,  representing  in 
colors  (yellow,  green  and  black)  lemon  trees  laden  with  fruit, 
and  other  trees,  interspersed  with  twenty-six-inch  panels 
with  polychrome  paintings  of  Chinese  vases  on  stands  (illus- 
tration 56).  The  colors  are  blue,  yellow,  green  and  brown. 
The  chapel  of  San  Antonio  Abad  adjoining  the  church  is 
covered  with  brightly  colored  tile-work  from  the  bases  to 
the  top  of  the  dome.  The  kneeling  effigies  of  Don  Diego 
del  Castillo  and  his  wife,  Dona  Helena  de  la  Cruz,  the  patron 
and  patroness  of  the  church  and  monastery,  carved  in  wood, 
are  still  to  be  seen  in  niches  in  the  wall. 

At  Tlaxcala  is  the  famous  shrine  of  the  Santuario  de 
Ocotlan,  which  stands  upon  a  hill  about  a  mile  southeast  of 
the  plaza.  It  is  built  in  the  Churrigueresque  style,  and  dates 
from  about  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century.  The  front 
of  the  church,  including  the  two  towers,  is  encrusted  with 
glazed  tile  of  a  dull  red  color  set  in  white  mortar,  which,  at 
a  distance,  presents  the  peculiar  appearance  of  the  laminated 
markings  of  a  serpent's  or  shark's  skin. 

At  Queretaro  is  the  church  of  Santa  Clara.  The  tower 
and  dome  are  said  to  have  been  built  about  1607  and  recon- 
structed at  the  latter  end  of  the  eighteenth  century.  The 
convent  once  connected  with  this  church  covered  several 
acres  of  ground  and  is  said  to  have  been  occupied  at  one 
time  by  eight  thousand  nuns.  The  tower  and  dome  of  the 
church  are  beautifully  decorated  with  glazed  tile  in  poly- 
chrome designs.  The  church  and  monastery  of  San  Au- 
gustin  also  show  some  handsome  work  in  glazed  tiles. 

The  church  of  San  Sebastian  and  Santa  Prisca,  at  Tasco, 
dates  from  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  and  is  of 


'  9  J      ' 

■      A* 


56.    TILE   PANEL. 
In    the    Dado  of  the   Choir  of  the   Church   of  Santa    Maria   de   los  Angeles, 

Churubusco,    Mexico. 

Erected    in    167S. 

Showing  Chinese  Influence. 


57-     FACADE    OF    THE    CHURCH    OF    SAN    FRANCISCO    ACATEPEC, 

Near    Cholula,    Mexico. 
Encrusted  with  Tile  Work. 


58.     PORTION   OF  ZO'CALO   OF  THE   CHURCH  OF  SAN   FRANCISCO 

ACATEPEC, 

Near  Cholula,   Mexico. 

Showing    Elaborate    Tile   Work. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  97 

Churrigueresque  style.     The  dome  is  covered  with  tile-work 
in  various  designs  with  an  inscription  in  bold  lettering. 

At  Celaya,  State  of  Guanajuato,  the  church  of  Nuestra 
del  Carmen  (1807)  has  a  glazed  dome  decorated  in  zigzag 
pattern  with  inserted  tile  panels. 

Numerous  other  churches  in  Mexico  are  richly  adorned 
with  old  Puebla  tile  designs,  including  a  church  at  Tepozot- 
lan,  near  Cuernavaca,  but  probably  the  most  remarkable 
example  of  elaborate  tile-work  in  Mexico  is  that  of  the 
church  of  San  Francisco  Acatepec,  situated  far  from  any  set- 
tlement, about  five  kilometers  from  Cholula,  on  the  old  royal 
road  which  runs  from  Puebla  to  Atlixco.  The  facade,  tower 
and  belfry  of  this  structure  are  completely  covered  with 
mosaic  designs  in  richly  colored  enameled  tiles.  The  illus- 
trations show  the  facade  (57)  and  a  tile  panel  (58)  in  the 
zocalo  at  the  base  to  the  right  of  the  entrance,  above  which 
may  be  seen  a  border  of  six  small  tiles,  each  containing  the 
figure  of  a  lamb.  The  large  curved  tiles  which  surround  the 
pillars  are  especially  noteworthy. 

The  dome  of  the  temple  of  Nuestra  Senora  de  los 
Remedios  (Our  Lady  of  Remedies)  crowning  the  pyramid 
of  Cholula,  near  Puebla,  is  handsomely  glazed  with  colored 
tile-work. 

In  many  of  the  cemeteries  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Puebla  tiles  were  used  to  beautify  the  graves  and  tomb- 
stones. Some  of  these,  decorated  with  figures  of  Saints,  may 
still  be  observed  in  place  (see  illustration  42). 

Curved,  unglazed  roofing  tiles,  of  Spanish  form,  are  still 
to  be  seen  on  buildings  in  Tasco,  Cuernavaca  and  other 
places  in  Mexico. 

Maturin  M.  Ballou,  in  his  "Aztec  Land"  (1890),  states 
that  there  were  in  that  year  eight  or  ten  tile  factories  in 
Puebla. 


X.     Marks  on  Mexican  Maiolica. 

As  we  have  already  seen,  the  members  of  the  potters' 
guild  in  Puebla  were  required  to  use  a  clearly  marked  stamp 
or  monogram  on  all  pottery  made  by  them  after  the  year 
1653.  This  rule  remained  in  force  at  least  as  late  as  1676. 
It  is  to  be  presumed  that  all  pieces  of  pottery  made  during 
these  twenty-three  years,  when  large  quantities  of  the  ware 
must  have  been  produced,  bore  some  distinguishing  mark. 
Previous  to  the  organization  of  the  guild  the  marking  of 
the  ware  was  not  compulsory  and  we  have  no  knowledge 
that  the  practice  was  general  after  the  year  1676.  We 
would,  therefore,  expect  to  find  among  the  older  pieces  of 
maiolica  a  fair  percentage  bearing  trade-marks,  which  would 
indicate  the  third  quarter  of  the  seventeenth  century  as  the 
period  of  manufacture,  but  in  reality  marked  pieces  are  ex- 
ceedingly rare  at  the  present  time.  It  is  not  probable  that 
the  stringent  laws  of  the  guild  should  have  been  ignored 
by  the  potters,  and  we  can  only  account  for  the  scarcity  of 
marked  examples  by  the  supposition  that  the  great  majority 
of  the  earlier  pieces  have  disappeared  through  breakage  or 
loss.  An  occasional  piece,  however,  is  found  which  bears 
one  or  more  letters,  or  a  monogram,  presumably  the  initials 
or  private  symbol  of  the  maker  or  decorator.  Of  many  hun- 
dreds of  pieces  examined  by  the  writer,  in  public  collections 
and  in  private  hands,  not  more  than  a  score  or  so,  exclusive 
of  tiles,  have  been  found  to  possess  distinguishing  marks. 

FThe  mark  most  frequently  found  is  the  letter  F, 
which  is  painted  in  blue  on  tiles  with  figure  and  animal 
paintings    in    combined    Spanish    and    Chinese    styles, 
which  were  evidently  produced  at  a  single  factory.     It  in- 
variably occurs  on  the  painted  side,  having  been  penciled 

98 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  99 

wherever  it  could  be  introduced  among  the  decorative  de- 
signs. In  the  collection  of  Mr.  Albert  Pepper  are  numerous 
animal  tiles  bearing  this  mark,  and  others  are  owned  by 
this  Museum  (see  illustration  41). 

#On  other  tiles  from  the  same  factory  we  fre- 
quently find  the  figure  of  a  bee,  painted  in  blue, 
probably  standing  for  the  initial  letter  of  the  name 
of  the  decorator  (see  fifth  tile  in  illustration  41). 
Mr.  Albert  Pepper  has  many  tiles  bearing  this  device,  which 
he  has  set  in  the  walls  of  his  residence,  near  San  Angel,  a 
suburb  of  the  City  of  Mexico. 

SThe  large  bacino,  or  bowl,  shown  in  illus- 
tration 23,  which  is  ornamented  in  blue,  with 
•  brown  outlines,  in  Chinese  taste,  bears  on  the 
under   side    the    letters    C.    S.,    painted   in   the 
enamel  in  blue.     It  is  probable  that  these  are  the  trans- 
posed initials  of  Diego  Salvador  Carreto,  a  prominent  mem- 
ber of  the  guild. 

^1  A  large  vase  in  the  Museum   collection,  dec- 

fafl  orated  in  Chinese  style  (shown  in  illustration  20), 
/  *■*'  bears  on  one  side  a  monogram  or  character  in  blue, 
apparently  intended  for  the  letters  h  c,  or  H  c.  This  same 
mark  appears  on  a  jar,  ten  and  a  half  inches  high,  decorated 
in  blue  in  the  Spanish  tattooed  style,  owned  by  Mr.  Albert 
Pepper.  Could  this  be  the  mark  of  Damian  Hernandez, 
one  of  the  first  Inspectors  of  the  potters'  guild? 

It  will  be  noticed  that  all  of  the  marked  pieces  thus  far 
discovered  belong  evidently  to  the  latter  half  of  the  seven- 
teenth century. 

In  the  absence  of  a  complete  list  of  the  members  of  the 
potters'  guild,  the  exact  significance  of  these  marks  has  not 
yet  been  determined. 


XI.     Forgeries  and  Reproductions. 

As  has  already  been  stated  there  are  now  six  factories 
in  Pnebla  where  ordinary  tin  enameled  pottery  is  being 
made  in  commercial  quantities.  Similar  ware,  but  of  darker 
red  body,  is  also  being  produced  at  Oaxaca.  As  a  rule, 
the  modern  Puebla  ware  is  made  of  rather  coarse  clay  and 
decorated  with  rude  geometrical  designs  in  various  colors, — 
blue,  red,  green,  yellow,  brown,  etc.  This  rude  maiolica 
may  be  found  in  the  markets  in  the  City  of  Mexico  and  the 
nearby  towns,  in  Puebla  and  its  vicinity. 

There  is  a  class  of  ware,  however,  which  is  being  fabri- 
cated in  the  city  of  Puebla,  which  is  of  a  more  dubious  char- 
acter. To  supply  the  demand  for  ancient  maiolica,  enter- 
prising manufacturers  are  now  turning  out  some  dangerous 
counterfeits  of  the  old  blue  and  white  wares  of  the  eight- 
eenth century.  By  the  use  of  a  creamy  enamel,  the  chip- 
ping of  the  edges,  the  artificial  tinting  of  the  exposed  body, 
and  the  grinding  of  the  bases  to  represent  wear,  an  ap- 
pearance of  age  is  imparted  which  is  likely  to  deceive  anyone 
but  an  expert.  The  writer  has  seen  several  of  these  pieces 
in  the  form  of  drug  jars,  which  were  offered  for  sale  at  high 
prices,  in  some  instances  by  reputable  and  honest  dealers, 
who  themselves  had  been  deceived.  These  forgeries  can 
readily  be  detectd  by  the  pronounced  yellowish  tint  of  the 
ground  enamel,  which  deep  color  is  not  found  in  genuine 
pieces,  and  by  the  smeary  appearance  of  the  dark  blue  pig- 
ment, which,  instead  of  having  been  applied  boldly  and 
standing  out  smoothly  and  clearly  in  relief,  has  been  painted 
roughly  and  unevenly  by  numerous  strokes  of  the  brush.     A 

IOO  » 


59.    GROUP  OF  MODERN  MAIOLICA. 

Decorated  in  Blue. 

By  Setior  Enrique  L.  Ventosa,   of  Puebla,  Mexico. 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


101 


comparison  of  genuine  and  forged  pieces  will  reveal  a  marked 
difference  and  save  the  collector  from  future  humiliation. 
The  most  misleading  feature  of  these  counterfeits  is  the 
intentional  chipping  of  the  edges  and  the  treatment  of  the 
breaks  to  imitate  the  staining  acquired  by  great  age.  Pur- 
chasers of  Puebla  maiolica  are  cautioned  to  be  on  their 
guard  against  the  acquisition  of  these  more  than  worthless 
pieces.  Far  better  to  buy  an  honest  modern  reproduction, 
such  as  those  decorated  by  Serior  Ventosa  (see  illustration 
59),  which  stands  for  exactly  what  it  is,  than  to  pay  a  high 
price  for  probably  a  still  more  recent  piece,  posing  as  an 
antique. 

Another  variety  of  ware  is  being  manufactured,  which, 
to  the  uninitiated,  is  scarcely  less  deceptive.  We  refer  to 
large  pieces  decorated  in  Chinese  style,  having  irregular 
medallions  in  which  are  depicted  scenes  from  Aztec  and 
Hispano-Mexican  history.  We  have  seen  large  vases  of 
this  character  bearing  poorly  painted  and  weakly  colored 
figure  scenes  relating  to  the  Conquest,  sometimes  accom- 
panied by  descriptive  inscriptions.  While  these  pieces,  to 
which  reference  was  made  in  Chapter  V,  have  been  supposed 
to  be  of  the  seventeenth  century,  they  are  in  reality  of  quite 
recent  manufacture.  Illustration  60  will  give  a  fair  idea 
of  these  recent  fabrications. 

A  third  class  of  ware  which  is  found  abundantly  in  Mex- 
ico, examples  of  which  may  be  seen  in  almost  every  collec- 
tion of  Mexican  maiolica,  is  that  produced  during  the  sec- 
ond half  of  the  nineteenth  century.  It  is  almost  invariably 
painted  in  polychrome  and  belongs  to  the  fourth  style, 
which  we  have  classed  as  Hispano-Mexican,  or  Pueblan. 
Large  vases,  bowls,  barrel-shaped  jardinieres,  jars,  cylindrical 
vessels  with  flaring  mouths  surmounted  by  lids  (resembling 
the  modern  china  toilet  slop  jars),  plates,  and  other  articles, 
elaborately   ornamented    with    gaudy   colorings,    are   to   be 


102 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


found  in  every  curiosity  shop  in  Mexico,  where  they  pose  as 
genuine  antiques.    A  careful  examination  of  such  pieces  will 


60.    MODERN  MAIOLICA  VASE. 

Decorated  in   Blue. 

Imitating  Early   Puebla  Work. 


reveal  the  fact  that  the  enamel  is  new  and  fresh,  showing  no 
signs  of  age,  save  where  the  base  rims  have  been  ground  to 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


103 


make  them  stand  evenly  and  firmly.  We  find  on  these 
pieces  no  scratches  or  chipping  acquired  by  long  use.  While 
this  ware  can  scarcely  be  placed  in  the  category  of  forgeries, 
since  it  has  probably  not  been  made  to  deceive  the  unwary, 
pieces  are  nevertheless  bought  and  sold  extensively  as  an- 
tiques, although  they  bear  little  resemblance  to  the  wares 
produced  prior  to  the  nineteenth  century. 

There  are  always  to  be  found  in  the  older  wares  well- 
marked  characteristics  which  will  enable  the  collector  or 
student  to  distinguish  them  unerringly  from  their  modern 
imitations.  The  beautiful  quality  of  the  glaze,  the  deep, 
rich,  tone  of  the  blue  enamel,  the  mellowness  of  surface 
imparted  by  the  hand  of  time,  the  peculiarities  of  decorative 
treatment  and  the  unmistakable  evidence  of  long  use,  have 
never  been  successfully  imitated  by  the  modern  potters. 
The  later  wares  possess  a  hard  appearance  of  body  and 
enamel,  a  thinness  and  weakness  of  coloring,  or,  when  ap- 
plied thickly,  a  rawness  and  freshness  of  tint,  a  lack  of  grace 
in  their  lines,  and,  as  a  rule,  an  absence  of  time  cracks  and 
evidences  of  natural  wear,  which  stamp  them,  in  the  eyes  of 
the  connoisseur,  as  present  day  fabrications,  or  as  bungling 
frauds. 


XII.     Recapitulation. 

From  the  meagre  references  to  the  pottery  industry, 
found  in  the  early  literature  of  Mexico  and  the  manuscript 
archives  of  the  City  of  Puebla,  combined  with  the  results 
of  a  careful  study  of  the  ancient  maiolica  and  tile-work  which 
have  survived,  we  learn  that  previous  to  the  year  1580  Span- 
ish potters  were  plying-  their  trade  in  Mexico  and  instruct- 
ing the  natives  in  the  mysteries  of  the  art.  The  first  Span- 
ish clay-worker  in  the  New  World  initiate^  the  Mexicans 
into  the  secret  of  glazing  the  ware  with  tin  and  oxide  of 
lead.  Two  distinct  influences  were  at  work  on  the  ceramic 
art  in  New  Spain,  first  the  Spanish,  through  the  potters  of 
Talavera,  and  later  the  Chinese,  through  the  extensive  im- 
portation of  Oriental  porcelains  during  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth  centuries.  The  manufacture  seems  to  have  been 
confined  to  the  City  of  Puebla  until  a  recent  period,  when 
potteries  were  established  in  Oaxaca  for  the  production  of 
ordinary  commercial  ware.* 

The  manufacture  of  decorative  tiles  was  commenced 
at  an  early  date,  probably  before  1575,  as  is  clearly  proved 
by  the  extensive  use  of  tile-work  in  many  of  the  oldest 
churches  and  convents  in  New  Spain. 

Until  1653,  in  which  year  a  potters'  guild  was  organized, 
the  maiolica  and  tile  industries  flourished  in  Puebla  with- 
out restriction  and  during  this  time,  when  no  guild  regula- 
tions were  in  force,  a  great  variety  of  styles  was  developed, 


*  At  the  present  time  rude  pottery  glazed  with  tin,  is  being  pro- 
duced in  Guatamala.  A  collection  of  this  ware  may  be  seen  in  the 
Philadelphia  Commercial   Museum. 

104 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO  105 

which  distinguished  the  products  of  individual  establish- 
ments. The  laws  which  were  adopted  regulated  the  careful 
preparation  of  the  clays  and  glazes,  the  composition  of  the 
ware,  and  the  character  of  the  decorations,  and  required  the 
stamping  of  each  piece  by  the  individual  mark  of  the  pot- 
ter. It  would  seem  that  this  last  requirement  was  enforced 
during  the  existence  of  the  guild,  which  so  far  as  the  archives 
show,  continued  from  1653  to  about  1676.  After  the  lat- 
ter date  the  organization  seems  to  have  languished  and  the 
regulations  for  the  protection  of  the  potters  were  apparently 
no  longer  enforced.  About  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century  the  decadence  set  in  and  the  art  began  rapidly 
to  decline.  About  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century 
it  had  reached  its  lowest  ebb.  The  golden  age  of  the  art 
appears  to  have  been  from  about  1650  to  1750. 

The  earliest  maiolica  and  tiles  made  in  Mexico  were 
probably  decoratedtin  blue,  but  other  colors  were  introduced 
about  1650,  as  in  the  rules  of  the  guild,  regulating  the  pro- 
duction of  fine  ware,  in  the  Talavera  style,  it  was  specified 
that  the  figures  and  designs  should  be  in  colors,  shaded 
with  "all  the  five  colors  used  in  the  art."  These  colors 
were  blue,  green,  yellow,  brown,  and  red.  After  the  open- 
ing of  the  nineteenth  century  other  colors,  such  as  rose, 
purple,  etc.,  were  added  and  a  native  Mexican  or  Pueblan 
style  was  developed,  in  which  the  early  Spanish  and  Chinese 
influences  gradually  disappeared. 

It  is  not  quite  clear  what  was  meant  by  "relief  work 
in  blue."  Among  the  early  pieces  which  have  survived  we 
have  found  no  examples  with  modeled  or  moulded  decora- 
tions in  which  the  body  or  paste  stands  out  above  the  sur- 
face. A  spherical  jar  bearing  around  its  upper  half  a  few 
conventional  leaf  ornaments  (see  illustration  61),  which,  at 
first  glance,  might  be  taken  for  relief  decoration,  on  close 
inspection  proves  to  have  been  painted  with  a  brush.     The 


io6 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


so-called  "relief  work"  was  produced  by  the  thick,  viscous, 
heavily  applied  blue  enamel,  which  is  perceptibly  raised  above 
the  ground,  which  effect  is  so  characteristic  of  the  wares  of 
that  period,  and  later.  As  has  been  previously  stated,  how- 
ever, some  of  the  tile-work  was  ornamented  in  embossed 
patterns  (see  border  at  right  hand  side  of  illustration  49) 


61.     MAIOLICA   VASE   (izyi   Inches  in   Height). 

Decorated  in  Raised  Blue,  Outlined  in  Black. 

Puebla.  About  1700. 

In  the   Museum   Collection. 


and  a  tile  in  the  Museum  collection  possesses  a  design 
modeled  in  high  relief,  covered  with  brilliant  tones  of  yel- 
low and  green  enamel. 

It  has  only  been  within  the  past  few  years  that  the  Mexi- 
cans themselves  have  begun  to  recognize  the  true  character 
of  the  tin  enameled  pottery  found  in  their  country.  Col- 
lectors in  various  parts  of  the  Republic  have,  as  a  result  of 


MAIOLICA  OF  MEXICO 


107 


these  discoveries,  turned  their  attention  to  the  gathering 
together  and  preservation  of  these  interesting  remains  of 
an  ancient  art,  and  we  may  look  for  the  formation,  in  the 
near  future,  of  more  or  less  important  collections.  In  the 
meanwhile  that  which  has  been  secured  for  this  Museum,  in- 
cluding a  series  of  decorated  tiles  consisting  of  upwards  of 
three  hundred  of  the  best  designs  and  patterns,  produced 
from  the  earliest  times  to  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, will  continue  to  be  the  most  representative  one  ac- 
cessible to  ceramic  students. 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Acapulco,  Port  of  60,  61 

Alaman,  Don  Lucas 13 

Albarelli      51,  56,  74.  77 

Aloora    9,  47 

Alhambra,   Tile-Work   in    47,  91 

Alvarado,  Casa  de  83 

Architecture,  Tiles  in  Mexican   87 

Churrigueresque    92,  94,  96,  97 

Mudejar  92,  95 

Assyria  9 

Atlixco,  Convent  of  San  Francisco  47,  87 

Austrian  Dynasty,  Crowned  Eagle  of  70 

Ayuntamiento  of  Puebla 18 

Aztec  Influence  86 

Azulejos    43,  44 

Babylonia    9 

Ballou,  Maturin  M 97 

Bancroft,  H.  H 12 

Bath  Tub,  Maiolica 66 

Bauer,   Dr.   Wilhelm    4 

Baxter,    Sylvester    92,  95 

Benitier    79 

Borton,  Rev.  Francis  S 4,  18 

Boston  Museum  of  Fine  Arts 9 

Brongniart    ^  .  .  39 

Capuchin    Convent    70 

Capuchinas,  Order  of   J2 

Carmelite  Order   79 

Carreto,  Diego  Salvador,  Master  Potter  23,  28,  32,  99 

Casa  de  Alfenique   92 

Casa  de  Alvarado  83 

Casa  de  los  Azulejos  95 

Castillo,  Don  Diego  del   96 

Cathedral  of  Puebla    88 

109 


no  INDEX 

PAGE 

Cclaya,  Church  of  Nuestra  del  Carmen  97 

Cemeteries,  Tiles  from  Old  85,  97 

Cervantes,  Sefior  Rafael   53,  68,  72 

Chapel  of  the  Rosary,  Puebla  47-91 

China    17 

Chinese    Porcelain    27,  29,  43,  104 

Chinese  Potters    10,  59 

Chinese  Styles  of  Decoration  62 

Chocolate  Jars  with  Locks 62 

Cholula 97 

Church  of  Guadalupe,  Puebla 88 

"  La  Luz,  Puebla  90 

La  Santissima  Trinidad,  Mexico  94 

Nuestra  Seiiora  de  la  Soledad,  Puebla 92 

"  Nuestra  Seiiora  del  Carmen,  San  Angel  95 

"  San  Augustin,  Queretaro  96 

San  Francisco,  Mexico  94 

"  San  Francisco,  Puebla 92 

San  Francisco,  Acatepec     97 

"  San  Jose,  Puebla     92 

"  San  Miguel,   Puebla    30,  94 

San   Sebastian,  Tasco    96 

"  Santa  Catarina,  Puebla  92 

"  Santa  Clara,  Queretaro  96 

Santa  Maria  de  los  Angeles,  Churubusco  96 

"  Santo  Domingo,   Puebla    47,  9° 

Churrigueresque  Style  of  Architecture  92,  94,  96,  97 

Don  Josef,  Architect  94 

Churubusco,  Church  of  Santa  Maria  de  los  Angeles 96 

Clay,  Red 35 

"     White  35 

Clays,  Two  Varieties    35 

Cloth,  Manufacture  of   11,  13,  16 

Colors  used  in  Maiolica  Decoration  36,  105 

Convent  of  San  Francisco,  Atlixco  47,  87 

"  Santa  Rosa,   Puebla    90 

Cruz,  Doha  Helena  de  la 96 

Crying  of  Potters'  Guild 26 

Cuernavaca    97 

Cup  Holders,  Maiolica    77,  80 

Cutlery,  Manufacture  of   17 

Decadence  of  Maiolica  in  Mexico 80.  105 

de  Forest,  Mrs.  Robert  W 43,  72 


INDEX  III 

PAGE 

Dominican    Friars    10,  49,  50 

Eagle,  Double-Headed    70 

Earthenware,    Glazed    17 

Espinosa,  Antonio   33 

Felts,  Manufacture  of 16 

Fernando  VII    76 

Flanders,   Images   from    12 

Font  y  Guma,  Senor  Joseph  83 

Forgeries  of  Ancient  Maiolica  100 

France    17 

Franciscan  Monks    92 

Gage,  Thomas    16 

Geneva  Tiles    47 

Genoa    44>  5° 

Gesarte  38 

Glass  Factories  14.  16 

Glassware    17 

Glaze  for  Maiolica   20,  29,  34,  35 

Glazed  Earthenware    1 7 

Glazing  taught  by  the  Spaniards  12,  17 

Gottschalk,    Consul-General,   A.M 49 

Guadalupe,  Red  Clay  from 35 

Virgin    of    88-90 

Guanajuato  80,  81,  97 

Guatamala,  Tin  Enameled  Pottery  of 104 

Guevara,   Luis    33 

Haro,   Andres  de.   Master  Potter    23,  28,  32 

Harrison,  Mrs.  John 42>  64 

Heraldic  China   69 

Hernandez,  Damian,  Master  Potter  23,  28,  32,  99 

Hispano-Moresque  Pottery    38,  44 

Hotel  del  Jardin,  Mexico 94 

House  of  Almond  Cake,  Puebla 92 

House  of  Tiles,  Mexico  95 

Icazbalceta,  J.  G "i  I2 

Imitations  of  Old  Maiolica  33 

Indians,  taught  by  Spaniards  12 

Inkstands    58,  59 

Iron  Covers  on  Jars  61,  62 


[12  INDEX 

PAGE 

Italy.  Images  from   12 

Italian  Influence  9,  44 

Jacquemart    41 

Janvier,  Thomas  A 14,  72 

Japanese  in  Mexico  10,  59-61 

Jaques,  Herbert  10 

Jardinieres.   Maiolica    53,  68,  69,  JJ 

Jockey  Club  House,  Mexico  95 

Knives,  Manufacture  of  17 

Lamborn.  Dr.  Robert  H 85 

Laws  of  Potters'  Guild  18 

Legend  of  Apparition  of  Virgin  of  Guadalupe 88 

Loreto,  Red  Clay  from   35 

Maiolica,   Mexican    46 

Chinese  Style   46,  59,  62 

Decadence  of,  in  Mexico  80,  105 

Golden  Age  of  Mexican   105 

Hispano-Mexican  Style   46,  J7 

Moresque  Style   46,  48,  50 

Spanish   Style    46,  49 

Talavera  Style 46,  49-5*,  55,  56 

Tattooed  Style  51 

Three  Grades  of  Mexican  19 

Tiles    82 

Varieties  of   26,  27 

Malaga    38,  50 

Manises    38,  83 

Manufactories,  First  in  Mexico  14 

Marks  21,  30,  68,  71,  98 

Marzacotto,  not  applied  to  Mexican  Maiolica  34 

Marques,  Antonio,  Master  Potter  25,  26,  28,  32 

Mendieta    11 

Mexico,  Church  of  La  Santissima  Trinidad 94 

Church  of  San  Francisco , 94 

Hotel  del  Jardin   94 

House  of  Tiles     95 

Jockey  Club  House   95 

Manufactories,   First  in    14 

Tile-Work  in  City  of   94 

Mint  House   16 


INDEX  II3 

PAGE 

Mislata   38 

Moorish  Influence    52 

Moreri,   Luis    13 

Morris,  John  T 43 

Mudejar  Style  of  Architecture  ' 92,  95 

Nuttall,  Mrs.  Zelia  4,  6o,  83 

Nuns  at  Queretaro    96 

Oaxaca    II,  60,  80,  100,  104 

Parra,  Dr.  Jose  Gomez  de  la   87 

Paterna    38 

Pennsylvania-German   Pottery   81 

Pepper,   Albert    4-  53,  63,  75,  76,  78,  99 

Philippines    10,  59,  60 

Pitkin,  Albert  H 4,  79 

Playing  Cards,  Manufacture  of  11 

Potteries  in   Puebla    13,  14,  16,  32 

Potters'  Guild    18 

Crying  of  Laws  of 26 

Potters'  Marks    21,  30,  68,  71,  98 

Pottery  Exported  from  Puebla   13 

Processes  of  Manufacture   34 

Puebla  Ayuntamiento    18 

Cathedral     88 

Chapel  of  the  Rosary  47,  91 

Church  of  Guadalupe  88 

Church  of  La  Luz 90 

Church  of  Nuestra  Sehora  de  la  Soledad  92 

Church  of  San  Francisco  92 

Church  of  San  Jose  92 

"        Church  of  San  Miguel  30,  94 

Church  of  Santa  Catarina  92 

Church  of  Santo  Domingo  47,  90 

Convent  of  Santa  Rosa  90 

Founding  of  City  of 14 

"        House  of  Almond  Cake  92 

"        Population  of    15,  16 

Pueblan   Potters    32 


Queretaro,  Church  of  San  Augustin 96 

Church  of  Santa  Clara  96 

"  Nuns  at  96 


114  INDEX 

PAGB 

Ramaix,  M.  Gaston  de  4 

Ramos,  Jose,  Master  Potter  25,  28,  32 

Red  Clay  35 

Relief  Decoration   105 

Reproductions    100 

Riano,  Juan  F 39 

Romero,  Hilario   33 

Ignacio    33 

Roofing  Tiles   97 

Roque,  Master  Potter  25,  26,  28,  32 

Ross,  Dr.  Denman  W 10 

Rules  for  making  Maiolica  20 

Saint  Dominic,  Arms  of 91 

Saint  Michael  90,  94 

Salazar,  Dr.  Diego  Victoria 91 

Salt  Cellars,  Maiolica    79-  80 

San  Angel,  Church  of  Nuestra  Senora  del  Carmen  95 

San  Bartolo,  White  Clay  from  35 

San  Miguel,  Church  of,  Puebla 30-94 

San  Pedro,  White  Clay  from  35 

Sanchez,  J.  M 33 

"          Juan  Villa    14  17 

Sand   Shakers    5^ 

Santa  Rosa  de  Lima 85 

Santillana,  Spain   23,  28 

Santo  Domingo,  Arms  of 91 

Santo  Tomas,  White  Clay  from 35 

Santuario  de  Ocotlan,  Tlaxcala   96 

Savona  5° 

Scissors,  Manufacture  of  17 

Seville   9-47 

Sgraffito    Pottery    80 

Sierra,  Don  Justo  11 

Silk,   Manufacture  of    11 

Soap,          "               "    17 

Spanish  Potters  in  Mexico 25,  26,  50,  104 

Spanish  Tiles   83,  84 

Talavera 9,  10,  17,  27,  28.  38-42,  45,  49,  50,  59-  72.  73 

Tasco,  Church  of  San  Sebastian  96 

Tattooed    Style 51-53 

Tepozotlan    97 

Tile  Factories  in  Puebla    97 


INDEX  115 

PAGE 

Tiles,    Geneva    47 

Mexican   82,  87,  104 

Moresque   Style    Qi 

"        Spanish 83 

Spanish    Style    85.  86 

Relief    91 

Tin  Enamel    9 

Tlaxcala,  Santuario  de  Ocotlan  96 

Toledo    17,  38,  49.  72 

Torquemada,  Juan  de   12 

Trade  Guilds   18 

Uriarte,  Dimas    33 

Valencia    38,  50 

Tiles  of   83 

Valle,  Juan  N.  Del  16 

Vanilla  Jars,  with  Locks  62 

Venice    1 7 

Ventosa,  Sefior  Enrique  L 4,  32,   t>?> 

Vetancurt,  Augustin  de 16 

Virgin  of  Guadalupe,  Legend  of   88-90 

West  Indies.  Mexico  Maiolica  found  in  57 

White  Clay  35 

Wool     11 


Jmrnm-x 


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